


Changing Directions

by CaptainLucindaTavish



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Angst and Romance, F/M, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-02
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-06-02 21:54:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 58,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19450252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainLucindaTavish/pseuds/CaptainLucindaTavish
Summary: When Gul Dukat and Kai Winn become disillusioned with the Pah-wraiths and seek the Prophets, they are given a new purpose, but the resurfacing of the Circle and Captain Sisko's distrust could threaten their plans. Can they overcome their pasts, or will the cost of arrogance be too great?





	1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” All references to Bajoran food in this story are taken from Memory Alpha.

Changing Direction

Chapter 1: Disillusion

Kai Winn Adami sat at her desk, thumbing through the blank pages of the Kosst Amojan for what felt like the twentieth time that day. Blank. No matter how many times she looked at it, the pages were still blank. With a frustrated sigh, she shut the book and stood, walking over to the window. What was she supposed to do? How was she supposed to lead Bajor into a new time of prosperity with little to no instruction?

Her assistant, Solbor, cleared his throat as he entered her study, drawing her out of her thoughts. “Eminence, have you found what you were searching for?” he asked politely.

She noticed how his eyes narrowed when he glanced at the book on her desk. “No,” she admitted to him. “The pages are blank.”

“If I may make an observation…” he began.

“Go ahead,” she allowed.

“Perhaps it is a lesson from the Prophets, that straying from their path leads to nothing. I am not saying that you have strayed, Eminence. I would not dare to suggest it. However, perhaps you are being tested,” Solbor mentioned.

_He knows something, or at the very least he suspects something_ , Winn thought to herself. “Why do you think the Prophets would want to test me?”

Solbor chose his next words carefully, knowing the volatility of Winn’s temper if provoked. “I do not presume to know the will of the Prophets. However, I think that sometimes the Prophets test us in order to teach us something about ourselves, so that we look upon our own lives with the right amount of scrutiny.”

“Do you think that my life requires such scrutiny?” she questioned.

He gulped, visibly nervous. “All our lives do, Eminence.”

“Solbor, if there is something you wish to say, then say it,” she pursued.

Her assistant took a deep breath. “What do you really know about this man, Anjohl Tennan?”

She was taken aback by his question. “He is a farmer from-”

“Have you looked at his hands? Do they look like the hands of a farmer? Eminence, something is not right. I do not trust him and I caution you in doing so. I am only saying this to protect you, and Bajor. Whatever deities he serves, they are not the Prophets. Why would the Prophets want you to read from the Kosst Amojan?” he questioned.

“Go. I would like to be left alone, Solbor,” she told him bluntly. He nodded and left the room.

Was he right? Was all this a test of the Prophets that she was failing miserably? Had Anjohl lied to her? She turned back to the window and noticed him sitting on the ground by the pond in the garden. _Perhaps it is time for some answers_ , she decided, leaving her office and walking down the back steps to the garden.

The flowers were in bloom, from shades of red and pink, to lavender, yellow, light blue and orange. The deep green foliage was filling out from the rain that was common on Bajor. Yet Gul Dukat was in no mood to appreciate the natural beauty around him as he stared into the fish pond, all too aware of his altered reflection.

The pages in that book had been blank. After all Dukat had done, after the visions, after surgically altering himself, the pages had been blank. It was all for nothing. Everything had been for nothing. Life has been one false hope after another. All I ever wanted was to make Bajor better. _Maybe I should have just left it all alone. What would Ziyal have told me? She probably would have asked what the costs were. She was wise beyond her years, and it’s my fault that her years were cut short_ , Dukat thought to himself.

He looked over his left shoulder, hearing someone approaching. When he saw the familiar gold robes, he gave her a small smile and stood. Then he noticed the critical look in her eyes. “Adami, is everything alright?” he inquired.

She folded her hands in front of her. “There are things you and I really should discuss.”

They walked over to a table and chairs in the shade. “Where do you want to begin?” he asked her.

“No matter how many times I look at it, the book is still blank. What could the Pah-wraiths possibly want us to do with a blank book? What is this really about? Solbor thinks that it might be a test of sorts from the Prophets, a test for me to scrutinize myself. If it is a test, how do you factor into it? What about your visions?” she questioned.

He sighed, resting his hands on his knees. “I don’t know what to tell you. I feel like everything I’ve done has been for nothing. It’s like you and I have become part of some cosmic joke. Maybe it’s some sort of cosmic punishment for the life I’ve led.”

_Solbor might have been right about him too_ , Winn reasoned. “Are you really a farmer?” she asked.

_And this is where it all goes horribly wrong_ , Dukat mused. “No,” was all he said.

She raised an eyebrow. “Who are you then?”

“A man who wanted to be right, and have people see that he was right; a man who wanted to help Bajor and lead it into a time of prosperity, a man who has made too many costly decisions for the wrong reasons,” he admitted.

There was something about his words, and something about his voice, that was very familiar to her in that moment. She was about to question him further, but then she noticed the lost look in his eyes, as if he had lost more than she had. She surprised him by placing a hand on his shoulder. “If the Prophets are testing me, then I apologize that you got caught up in this.”

Seeing the genuine compassion in her eyes, he felt guilt in the pit of his stomach for his deception. “But I am not an innocent bystander, Adami. I should be apologizing to you for getting you caught up in this mess.”

She folded her hands on the table in front of her. “Perhaps this is why the Pah-wraiths were banished: they cause chaos by making fools of people so that any noble intentions they might have had ultimately fail,” she pondered.

“Then what do we do now?” he inquired.

Winn thought for a moment. “There is a certain monastery not far from here. They have the Orb of Prophecy and Change. I do not know if it will be of any help to us, but I think we should try to seek the will of the Prophets, at the very least their forgiveness for our foolishness.”

“I suppose it doesn’t hurt to try,” Dukat said as he stood.


	2. Enlightenment

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.”

Chapter 2: Enlightenment

After they had packed for an overnight stay, Winn explained her plans to Solbor. “And you are bringing _him_ with you?” Solbor probed.

“We both need to seek the will of the Prophets,” she replied.

She walked toward the main door. Dukat started to follow her, but Solbor stopped him. “I want a word with you, privately.”

“Alright,” Dukat stated.

Solbor pulled him aside. “I know that you are not Anjohl Tennan. The real man is dead. I’m not even sure if you are Bajoran.”

Surprise at being nearly discovered flickered in Dukat’s eyes. “Why haven’t you told the kai yet?”

“Because I think you should be the one to tell her. You seem to care for her. If you truly do care for her, be honest with her,” Solbor reasoned.

“She may have me killed if she finds out who I really am,” Dukat mentioned.

“If you don’t tell her, I will. I’m giving you the chance,” Solbor told him. “And if you hurt her, anything happens to her, I will see to it myself that you are dead.”

Dukat gave a nod of understanding. “You have my word that no harm will come to her.”

“Good,” the assistant said.

Dukat caught up to Winn at the front gate. “What took you so long?” she inquired.

He decided to give her the shorter version of his conversation with Solbor. “Your assistant is worried that I’ll harm you on our trip. I gave him my word that you would come to no such thing,” Dukat relayed.

“Much to his credit, he has always been protective of me,” she said with a half-smile.

The trip to the monastery was partly by hired car, and partly on foot. It was late in the afternoon when they reached the monastery. The stone steps up to the monastery were covered in grass, but the grass was kept so that it looked like carpet instead of overgrown weeds. Vedeks and ranjins wandered the halls of the candle-lit sparsely decorated retreat. A few pilgrims could be seen on the grounds, sitting in contemplative silence or prayer.

Winn had made the appropriate calls to let the vedeks know that she and her new assistant would be staying overnight and required two rooms, which the vedeks kindly obliged. Winn and Dukat met outside their rooms the following morning.

“What now?” Dukat inquired.

“Now we consult the Prophets. This way,” Winn gestured for him to follow her. They moved through a few halls and stopped at a door.

“Why don’t you go first, Adami?” he suggested.

She gave him a polite smile as she thanked him and entered the room. Before opening the cupboard of the orb, she felt as though she did not want anything false as she tried to speak with the Prophets. She removed her hat and gold robes, unsure if she was worthy to wear them anymore. Taking a deep, hopeful breath, she opened the door to the orb and kneeled down in front of it. “Prophets, if you can hear me, please forgive me for my foolishness. I walked away from you after years of serving you because the false gods paid attention to me. If you are testing me, help me to see myself as I truly am, so that I can know what must be done next.”

Suddenly and much to her astonishment, there was a hazy glow in the room and Colonel Kira appeared, along with Solbor. “Are you the Prophets?” she asked tentatively.

“Yes. She is linear, like the Sisko,” Kira’s image stated.

“What do you seek?” Solbor’s image asked Winn.

“Understanding. Why have you not spoken to me before now? Why was I allowed to take a path that was not your path? What is it that you want me to learn about myself?” Winn questioned.

Captain Sisko’s image appeared. “She does not yet understand. She seeks order in the chaos, but does not understand why there is chaos.”

Kira’s image faced Winn and asked, “What do you wish to become?”

Winn looked at all the images, confusion written on her face. “How can I answer that question if I don’t understand what is going on?”

An image of Anjohl appeared. “He will help her understand. She must learn from him and forgive him. He will show her how she has strayed, and how to find her way back.”

“Forgive him for what? Who is he?” Winn inquired.

Sisko’s image spoke again. “He understands. He knows what he seeks and what he wishes to become.”

“What do you want from me?” Winn asked.

Adding to Winn’s confusion, the Cardassian orphanage on Bajor, the Tozhat Resettlement Center, came into view. “Help those who have been forgotten. They will soon f ace attack from those who see only their skin and the pain of the past, instead of their need.”

A girl approached her, a Cardassian girl with hazel-blue eyes. “Beware the Circle and the cost of arrogance,” she told Winn.

_The Circle_. Winn thought she had heard the last of that years ago. Did that mean that Jaro Essa was somehow out of prison and back into society? “What do you mean?” Winn asked the girl.

A closer look at the girl revealed that she was actually half-Cardassian and half-Bajoran. The answer to Winn’s question came from Solbor’s image. “If she can understand, then she may yet be spared the price of her arrogance.”

Suddenly the images were gone and Winn was alone again in the room with the orb. She donned her robes and hat once again, exiting the room. Dukat had been sitting on a bench in the hall. He stood as he saw her emerge. “How did it go?” he inquired.

She studied him for a moment before answering. “The Prophets finally spoke to me, but I must meditate on the vision for a while. Go ahead and go in. I will be in my room,” she answered.

He nodded and watched her go before entering the room with the orb. Once inside, he opened the door and kneeled down to pray. “Prophets, I know that I have done many wrongs, and I have no right to seek your advice or your wisdom. Forgive me for turning to the Pah-wraiths. Forgive me for turning the kai of Bajor to the Pah-wraiths. I am a fool and deserve whatever becomes of me, but please don’t let her fall as well.”

Suddenly he was surrounded by a familiar haze. Also his Cardassian skin had returned. An image of Sisko appeared. “There are no pretenses here. What do you seek?”

“I seek forgiveness for my foolishness, my selfishness, for my arrogance in thinking that I had all the answers, when I should have just left the Bajoran people alone, when I should have left Adami alone. I seek forgiveness for Tora Naprem’s death, for Jadzia Dax’s death, and for everything that happened on that space station with the cult. My arrogance has cost me far too much. I lost Ziyal to my arrogance. More than anything, I wish for her death not to be meaningless,” he admitted.

An image of Winn appeared and spoke. “What do you wish to become?”

Dukat sighed heavily. “A better man, a wiser man.”

“You are forgiven. You must help her to see that she is not so different from you. You must show her how she has strayed so that she may understand why she has strayed,” the image of Winn instructed.

“How am I to do this?” Dukat questioned.

An image of Garak appeared and answered him. “Tell her the truth. Tell her who you are.”

“I can’t. Once I do that, she’ll kill me,” Dukat argued.

“She must see who you are, so that she will realize who she is. Only then will she understand who she needs to become,” Garak’s image explained.

“Say that she doesn’t kill me after I tell her who I am. What then?” Dukat probed.

Kira’s image appeared also. “Protect her. The Circle has returned. The cost of her arrogance will be great.”

Dukat’s brow furrowed. “The Circle? What is that? How do I protect her from it?”

The room around him transformed to the jungle-like terrain of Bajor and a familiar building came into view. It was the Tozhat Resettlement Center that the child Rugal had been left at. An image of a Cardassian girl appeared. At first, Dukat thought that it was Ziyal, but as he looked closer, he could see that though the girl was actually half-Bajoran and half-Cardassian, the girl was not his beloved lost daughter. This girl had hazel-blue eyes.

“Protect those that have been forgotten,” the girl said.

He really had forgotten about them. Even though he had not left them there by choice, except for possibly that boy, Rugal, he had still left them there.

Winn’s image spoke again. “In protecting them, you will also protect her, and the other one.”

Dukat looked at Winn’s image with scrutiny. “What ‘other one’ are you referring to?”

“Protect them both,” the girl said as all of the images faded and Dukat found himself in the room with the orb once again, back in his Bajoran skin.

He left the room quietly. Then he nearly ran through the halls to find Winn.


	3. Resurfacing

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” Kata Lilan is mine. This story assumes that Dukat was unaware of the Circle. “The Circle” and “The Siege” are alluded to.

Chapter 3: Resurfacing

Dukat stopped at Winn’s door to catch his breath before knocking. She opened the door and ushered him inside. “I take it the Prophets have shown you something important?” she inquired.

He nodded. “You’re in danger, you and several war orphans. What is the ‘Circle?’” he asked.

She sat down on the bed, offering him the chair. Part of her had hoped that her vision would prove to be false again. Now she knew that it was not. “The Circle was a nickname given to an organization called the Alliance for Global Unity. Jaro Essa was appointed leader. He was trying to be minister during the earlier days of the provisional government. It was a xenophobic rebel group trying to get all alien influence off of Bajor. Some people seemed in favor of it, until they learned that the weapons were being supplied by Cardassians. Jaro was sent to prison. I had hoped never to hear about the Circle again.”

“I see why the Tozhat Resettlement Center needs to be protected. Cardassian children live there. But why are you in danger?” Dukat questioned.

Winn sighed heavily. “Jaro and I had made a deal of sorts, that if I backed him religiously, he would help to secure me as kai. At that time I was only a vedek. I was a fool to trust in anything that he offered. It was simply too tempting an offer to pass up at the time. I supported him until I found out that the weapons were coming from Cardassians. Then I betrayed him. That’s more than enough of a reason for him to come after me, if he has escaped prison,” she explained.

Power. She had been after power, much like Dukat. But how would he help her to see it? “What would you have done, had you become kai at that time? What if Jaro and others like him were hunting people down?” Dukat mentioned.

She folded her hands in her lap. “I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I suppose I was too eager to be kai to consider the long-term ramifications of what Jaro and his associated were doing.”

His brow furrowed. “Did you even for a moment consider the orphans? No matter how you may have felt about the Occcupation, or about Cardassians, those children are innocent,” Dukat asked pointedly.

Winn looked away from him and stared out at the sparse room. He was right. She had made costly decisions in her life without weighing the consequences. “I had forgotten about them. They are in the countryside and it is unfortunately and easy thing to do. I was in such a hurry to have more authority, to become kai, that I didn’t think about whom else might be affected by supporting a xenophobic faction.”

“If he is back, then we should warn them and see if we can help them,” Dukat suggested.

She nodded and stood. “You’re right. Let’s see if we can reach them from here.”

They left her room and headed for the main office at the monastery. On route to the office, they nearly collided with a vedek coming from the opposite direction. He stared at Winn intensely. “Eminence, you’re alive!”

She blinked and looked at him with scrutiny. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“We just received news that the magisterial estate was bombed. The Circle is taking credit for it,” the vedek explained.

Winn put her hand over her mouth in shock. “That’s terrible! Wait, do they think I’m dead?”

“Remains have been found, but not yet identified,” he replied. “It might be good to tell Bajor that you’re alive.”

“Solbor, poor man,” Winn said quietly, realizing that her long-time assistant and friend was dead. At least it meant that the Kosst Amojan was probably destroyed as well.

She pondered what should be done. The answer came from Dukat. “Actually if the Circle has targeted her, it might be better if she does not tell them that she survived, or where she is for a while.”

Winn nodded. “I agree. In the meantime, we must communicate with the Tozhat Resettlement Center. Can they be reached from here?”

The vedek regarded her thoughtfully. “No one has mentioned that place in years. From what I understand, their communications grid is very limited, probably only able to reach local emergency services. They cannot be contacted from here.”

“Then do you happen to have a map?” Winn probed.

“Possibly. Give me a moment,” he replied as he went into the office. After a few minutes he emerged with a folded document. “No one has been there in several years, but here is a map. I hope this helps.”

She and Dukat looked it over. “I think this will work,” he said to her. Then he turned back to the vedek. “Do you happen to have any robes we could borrow, so that she is not easily identified? Or any weapons by any chance?”

“We have robes that you may have. Unfortunately we do not have weapons. We are a monastery, not an armory,” the vedek answered.

He disappeared again and came back with two brown robes. The inside was lined with soft warm material and the outside had a water-resistant coating on it. “Thank you,” Winn said. As she and Dukat took the robes, she faced the vedek again. “Wait, you have to have weapons here. It was a law after the Occupation that all places of religious practice had to keep at least two weapons on the premises.”

The vedek nervously folded his hands in front of him. “We have two old phase pistols that are for the protection of this monetary. We cannot give them out because we cannot assure that they will be returned.”

She sighed and nodded reluctantly. “I understand. Come Anjohl. We should leave now.”

Dukat rubbed the bridge of his nose in thought for a moment. “Do you happen to have any brooms that you don’t need?”

“I suppose, but why do you want old brooms?” the vedek asked in confusion.

“To use the handles as weapons to protect ourselves,” Dukat explained.

“Oh,” the vedek responded. “In that case, we could give you a couple of brooms.”

Soon Winn and Dukat were on their way with a broom handle each, and their bags that they had brought with them to the monastery. Both wore the brown robes. Winn had placed her golden robes in her bag so that she would be less of a target, but the white undergarment was not as warm without them. Fortunately the robe was sufficient to keep her warm. They selected a road that was less traveled in order to avoid being recognized.

Having gone down the road for a while, Dukat pulled out the map to check that they were going in the right direction. Winn looked down at the map as well. “This is going to take days,” he said dejectedly. “The vedeks sent us on our way with barely any food.”

“There must be a few towns between the monastery and the resettlement center,” she suggested, scrutinizing the map. As she traced their route with her finger, she suddenly stopped and looked up at him. “Here,” she pointed to a rural spot, “is where some old friends of mine used to live. We might be able to stop there for the night.”

Dukat looked up at the sky as the clouds were beginning to appear. “If the weather holds up. How far is it?”

She sighed and faced him. “Ten miles.”

Since they were going to be walking for ten miles, Winn decided that she did not want ten miles of silence. “When I was a child, my best friend and I used to wander off on adventures. The tall grass next to the road here reminds me of those days. Her name was Kata Lilan, and she used to get me into all kinds of trouble. Once summer, a neighbor of ours was keeping ferigs. They snort and they make such a mess! Anyway, Lilan thought it would be funny to let them out of their pen and give them a good bath. From the minute that she opened that gate, we were in big trouble. First, the ferigs went straight for my mother’s vegetable garden. I suppose the good thing is that they didn’t run off and get lost, but oh was my mother angry! After they had decimated the garden, we did in earnest try to wash them. We had our sponges and our bucket of soapy water. They kept running in circles around us. It was an absolute disaster! They ran back to their pen when my neighbor called them. Lilan and I had to replant my mother’s garden and then apologize to my neighbor. Fortunately all he wanted us to do was feed the ferigs for the summer.”

Dukat chuckled. “I had a cousin who used to get me into trouble, much like your friend. He was older than me by a few years, so of course I made the mistake of trusting him most of the time. He and my uncle, brother to my father, would visit often. We were fairly young when my cousin had this idea to take public transportation into town. He was paying, and because he was older, I thought that he had told my uncle and my father. It wasn’t until we got back and I saw the annoyed look on my uncle’s face and the extremely irritated look on my father’s face that I realized my cousin had not told them where we were going. However, my uncle waived it off, saying ‘boys are a handful.’ My father took me aside and told me sternly, ‘Your cousin is irresponsible. I expect better of you.’ As intimidating as that was, it took a few years for that to sink in.”

They continued exchanging stories of childhood adventures, Dukat being careful to leave out all references to Cardassians or Cardassia. Halfway into their journey it began to rain. Then it began to pour. Though the robes and their bags had water-resistant coatings, their shoes and feet did not. Winn’s feet and the bottom hem of her garment were soaked. Dukat’s shoes squished as he walked, much to his annoyance.

He glared down at his shoes. “If I wasn’t worried about vermin or poisonous plants, I would consider going barefoot. That squishing sound is intolerable!” he exclaimed.

“At least the winds haven’t bothered us much. Rain accompanied by cold wind is worse,” she mentioned.

Noticing her suddenly shiver, he reached for her hand that was not holding her bag. “Adami, your hands are freezing. Do you want my robe?” he offered.

“I’m not going to let you freeze. I’ll live. We should be at the house soon,” she replied.

He held her hand to keep it warm until a two-story red farmhouse came in sight. “Is that it?” he asked.

She smiled. “I hope so. Come on. Let’s get out of this rain,” she said as they walked up to the front door and knocked.


	4. Old Friends

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” I gave Dukat a first name. Zopek Sten and Zopek Indra are mine. Lilan is mine.

Chapter 4: Old Friends

A stout Bajoran woman with curly brown hair pulled back into a bun and graying at the temples opened the door. She smiled warmly when she spotted Winn. “Adami!” she exclaimed as she embraced Winn. “What are you doing here? It’s been years!”

“It’s a long story, Indra. It is good to see you. May we come inside?” Winn asked. Indra looked past Winn and noticed Dukat, as well as the rain. “Of course!”

The woman held the door as Winn and Dukat entered what appeared to be her kitchen. From the door, a table big enough to seat twelve people with bench seats was off to the left. On the right side of the room were an old white refrigeration unit, an oven, and several white cabinets. The kitchen was painted sunny yellow with a boarder of small blue flowers toward the top. Winn’s friend paused to stir a large pot of what smelled like ratamba stew on the stove.

“Sten? Sten! We’ve got company, and you won’t believe who it is!” Indra hollered to a room beyond the kitchen. Then she turned back to her guests. “I know it’s not the kind of kitchen you’re used to, but I can’t stand the thought of using replicators. How can something spliced together replace the taste of real ratamba stew?”

“Do you still grow your own ingredients?” Winn asked, glancing past her to the window and seeing that the rain had stopped.

“Of course,” Indra replied as she looked at her stew again. “Almost ready.”  


A man with a sturdy build, gray hair, and a gouti entered the room. “Indra, you should tell the children that dinner is – by the Prophets!” he exclaimed, noticing Winn. “I just heard on the radio that the magisterial estate was bombed. Adami! How are you here?”

Winn smiled as the man hugged her. “Hello, Sten. I was actually visiting a local monastery at the time. My friend and I are on our way elsewhere, but if we could stop here for one evening and impose on your hospitality, it would make our journey easier.”

Sten looked from her to Dukat. Then he moved to shake Dukat’s hand. “Pardon my lack of manners. I’m Zopek Sten, and this amazing cook is my wife Indra.”

Dukat shook Sten’s hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you both. I’m Anjohl Tennan.”

Sten turned back to Winn. “You might want to tell Bajor that you’re still alive. What’s all this about?”

“The Circle is after me. It’s a long story. Let me just say that its leader has some personal reasons why he wants to get rid of me. There are some loose ends that I need to see to. Anjohl is helping me,” she explained evasively. She was not sure how her old friends would feel if they knew that she wanted to help Cardassian war orphans.

With a smile, Sten patted her shoulder. “Well, in any case, it’s good to have you.” Then he glanced down at her feet. “Indra, they’ve been standing here this whole time half-soaked!”

“I’ve been trying to make dinner!” she told him. Then she faced Winn and Dukat. “Sorry about that. Sten, call the children. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes, but you two can dry your feet by the fireplace. Follow me.”

Indra led them into the living room. A coffee table was next to a brown couch with a wooden frame, two wooden chairs, and one bookcase leaning against the wall by the front door. A fireplace with a warm fire was on the adjacent wall. Sten put the two chairs by the fireplace and gestured for Winn and Dukat to sit. “We’ll let you know when dinner is ready,” he told them, walking back to Indra.

Seated in front of the fire, Dukat faced Winn. “Your friends seem like nice people. How long have you known them?”

She put her hands near the fire and let the warmth lace through her fingers and replace the chill. “It must be at least 30 years. We met through Lilan. She was good at making friends, and even better at making friends who had skills useful to the Resistance. Indra and Sten used to be very good at making poisons.”

Dukat’s eyes widened and he became pale. “And we’re eating dinner here?” he whispered.

Winn laughed heartily at his expression. “I introduced you as my friend. You have nothing to worry about.”

He leaned toward her, continuing to whisper. “What if they work for the Circle? They could use your friendship with them against you.”

She shook her head. “These two are my friends. They would never hurt me.”

_I wish I had your certainty_. “I hope you’re right,” he said quietly.

Sten reentered the room. “Indra wants me to tell you that dinner is ready.”

They stood and entered the kitchen. Three children sat at the table on the side by the wall with bowls of the green stew in front of them. Indra ushered Winn and Dukat to two seats on the other side of the table. “These are our children: Kali, Odon, and Noni,” Indra said, gesturing to a tall girl with black hair, a smaller boy with brown hair, and a chubby girl with curly brown hair.

Winn and Dukat smiled politely at the children. “I’m Adami and this is Anjohl,” Winn introduced.

“It’s nice to meet all of you,” Dukat added.

As they began to eat, Dukat discreetly eyed the stew. It tasted excellent, but after what Winn had told them, he decided that one could not be too careful. “How is the soup?” Indra asked them.

“As good as I remember,” Winn responded.

“Delicious,” Dukat replied.

“How is your trip so far?” Sten inquired.

“Aside from the rain, it’s been well. We were exchanging stories about reckless relatives and mischievous neighbors,” Dukat relayed.

Sten chuckled and turned to Winn. “You told him about Lilan, didn’t you?”

Winn ate a spoonful of stew. “How could I not? Today’s trip was ten miles.”

Indra smirked as she ate some of her stew. “Tell him about the time Lilan made a bunch of Cardassians think that their camp was haunted.”

Winn laughed. “She did enjoy a good prank. She went around, adjusting their lights, moving things, making noises.”

Even Dukat laughed. “I think I remember hearing about that one. They were assigned to keep track of Bajorans harvesting food for the Cardassian troops. Their commanding officer visited them and asked why the camp was in such disarray, and why they had done very little supervising of the Bajoran workers. When they told him that the camp was haunted, he got so angry that he sent the Bajoran workers home for the week and made his troops harvest all the food, in record heat.”

“No less than they deserved,” Sten remarked as he ate his dinner. “What ever happened to Lilan?”

Indra sighed and looked up from her plate. “Right after the camp incident, she accidentally stepped on a gwelleck and got bit. You know how poisonous those things are. She died two days later.”

The Bajorans paused in a moment of silence. After they had all turned back to their food, Dukat added, “I’m sorry for your loss. She sounds like someone I would like to have met.”

After the meal, Indra collected the bowls. “We probably should figure out sleeping arrangements. Will you need one room or two?” she asked Winn.

Winn hesitated a moment. “Indra, Adami said he was her friend. ‘Friend’ usually means separate rooms. Lucky for you two, both our guest rooms are open,” Sten remarked, saving Winn from responding.

“Thank you,” Winn and Dukat said simultaneously.

The children went off to other parts of the house while Indra began to wash dishes. Dukat excused himself and stepped outside. Winn decided to help Indra with the dishes. After a pause, Indra spoke. “So how did you two meet?”

Winn picked up the washrag and ran it around a bowl. “In passing the last time I visited Deep Space 9.”

“That’s different,” Indra stated. She waited a moment before speaking again. “I noticed that you paused when Sten asked how many rooms you needed. Is Anjohl a friend, or more than that?”

“I’m not sure at the moment,” Winn answered honestly.

“He seemed a little nervous at dinner. What did you tell him about us?” Indra probed, rinsing some silverware.

“That you and Sten used to make poisons,” Winn admitted.

Indra laughed heartily. “By the Prophets! No wonder he kept inspecting the stew! We wouldn’t hurt him, especially since he’s a friend of yours. If he was a Cardassian, maybe, but even then, it would be too much of a hassle these days to hide the body. You better go talk to him and tell him that the stew is safe,” Indra encouraged.

Winn found Dukat standing outside, looking up at the night sky. “Indra wanted me to tell you that the stew is safe, and that you have nothing to worry about.”

He faced her and smirked. “I figured that, considering that I’m still alive at this point.”

“It’s quite dark out here,” Winn mentioned.

He turned his attention back to the sky. “I don’t know what it is, but the stars always look better when you are looking up at them from a planet,” he remarked.

Looking up, she smiled. “They do look better from here than in space.” Then she turned back to him. “What are you doing out here?”

He sighed and faced her. “I had some thinking to do. I need to tell you something important. I’m not really a farmer, I don’t have a brother, and Anjohl Tennan is not my name,” he began.

“You started to tell me this earlier, so I’ll ask the same question, who are you?” she inquired, lightly touching his arm.

Putting one of his hands on top of hers, he closed his eyes for a moment, wanting to hold onto her decent opinion of him for a little while longer. He opened his mouth to tell her, but the words were not there. How could he tell her that she had been wandering around with one of her people’s greatest enemies? _Maybe I can tell her in pieces_ , he decided. “I’m not Bajoran either. I became Bajoran because the Pah-wraiths wanted me to convince you to join them. I cannot apologize enough for deceiving you as I have.”

She took a deep breath and crossed her arms. _Not a farmer. Not even Bajoran. Had everything been a deception then?_ “Was everything a lie?”

“No,” he said, knowing what she was referring to, that first night on Deep Space 9 and the nights that followed. “The stories I told you about my cousin are true; they just took place on Cardassia. And I truly do care for you. That wasn’t part of the plan. Among other things, the Prophets have forgiven me, and told me that I must be honest with you.”

_This is almost more than I can swallow. How in the world could I have let this happen? But the Prophets did speak to him, and finally to me_. “Then tell me who you are,” she instructed.

He could already see the distrust forming in her eyes. “It’s better that I tell you in part. I’m a Cardassian. I used to be a soldier of sorts,” he admitted, regret and sadness appearing in his eyes.

As he had figured, she stepped back and glared at him angrily. Though it was obvious by his expression how upset he was, she could not ignore the white-hot anger that flared within her. “How dare you use me! I can’t believe I let you touch me! I trusted you! When will your people leave my people alone? Haven’t you all done enough to us? All your people do is use us!” she spat.

“We were wrong, all of us. We should have left your people alone. I should have left you alone. I am truly sorry about betraying your trust like this. Please don’t let innocent children pay the price for my arrogance. You don’t have to like having me around. You don’t have to talk to me unless it’s necessary. You don’t even have to acknowledge me, but please help me make this right. My government made a bad call and left those children there. I had no choice. Please help me fix this,” he expressed.

Turning away from him, she sighed through gritted teeth. “Leave me. I need to think on this for a while.”

“Alright,” he said simply as he went back into the house.

Why did he have to be a Cardassian? Anything would have been better than that! Yet he was trying to be honest with her. _What are the Prophets doing? Why do they want this man? And the Prophets want me to forgive him? Don’t then understand what the Cardassians have done to us, how they’ve beaten and tortured us, exploited our planet? Why? Why would they want to use this man, a soldier, to make things right? Why would they allow me to care for a man who is so obviously using me? No, he said that whatever happened between us wasn’t part of that. This isn’t fair. But the Prophets want me to forgive him. What am I learning about myself through this? That I really am a foolish woman who was too blinded by ambition to see the deception. He has a point. I shouldn’t let his actions hurt our efforts to help the orphans._

A noise to her left drew her out of her contemplation. He was back, with a mug of something hot in his hands. “Indra said that it was going to get colder and I thought that if you’re going to be out here a while, you might as well have something hot to drink.”

She took the mug and muttered, “Thank you.” They stood in silence for a while.

“I still intend to help the war orphans and protect them from the Circle. It’s what the Prophets want me to do, and it’s something that I should have remembered a long time ago,” he reiterated.

As she looked at him and saw his sincerity, her wrath subsided. However, she still needed him to understand that this was far from over. “I’m still angry with you, but we need to help those children. My government has forgotten about them also, and that was wrong. I suppose that I might need your help to accomplish this. Since it seems to be the will of the Prophets, having you arrested would be of no use at this time.”

He smirked. “I guess I can live with that. At least you didn’t say that you plan to shoot me on sight.”

Somehow he had managed to lighten the mood. It was one of the few times in her life when she faced a situation that did not have a clear outcome. Perhaps levity was the best answer. “Be careful with your suggestions. I might change my mind,” she added. “And I can’t keep calling you ‘Anjohl,’ at least not when it’s just the two of us. What is your name?”

_I suppose I could use my given name. Almost everyone who knows that name is dead_. “My given name is Gosrin. I’ll tell you my last name later.”

She nodded, accepting this new situation, at least in part. The Prophets wanted her to work with him. Fine. But they did not say that she had to be happy about it.

(A/N: I figured that animals have different names on other planets. Ferigs are pigs and a gwelleck is a snake).


	5. An Understanding

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” Zopek Sten and Zopek Indra are mine. Drumer is mine. Gosrin is pronounced with the long ‘o’ and short ‘i’.

Chapter 5: An Understanding

Winn woke in an unfamiliar room. Upon standing, she noticed the brown hooded robe and recalled the events of the previous day. She donned her white garment again and sighed, wishing that she had brought at least one change of clothing. She had not intended to stay more than a day or two at the monastery and had packed light. As she headed downstairs, Indra came out of the kitchen and met her at the foot of the staircase.

“Good morning, Adami. Did you sleep well?” her friend inquired.

“Good morning, Indra. I did, thank you. Where is Sten?” Winn asked.

“He went out to begin the farm work. I wanted to catch you before breakfast. All you have is that white outfit, isn’t it?” Indra mentioned.

Winn sighed and nodded. “We didn’t have time to pack much.”

“I have two dresses that would probably fit you. You may have them if you would like,” Indra offered.

“That would be wonderful,” Winn accepted.

Indra had a dark blue dress and a maroon dress, both with matching belts and in the casual rural style, with long sleeves, a vest-like design in the front, and a conservative V-neck. Winn decided that in trying to be less inconspicuous as they traveled, she should simply put her hair in one braid instead of the complicated braids on top of her head and at the base of her neck that she would customarily choose.

“Now you look like you could pass for one of my neighbors,” Indra told Winn with a smile as she came downstairs for the second time.

“Thank you again for your help, and do I smell kava rolls?” Winn asked.

Indra chuckled. “Yes. I figured that it would be a good breakfast to send you off with. By the way, I noticed that you seemed a little out of sorts this morning. Pardon my asking, but does it have anything to do with the discussions you and your friend had outside last night?”

Winn’s brow furrowed as she answered. “I received some unpleasant news last night that was very upsetting and has brought up several new questions.”

“So you two had a fight?” her friend probed.

“In a manner of speaking,” Winn admitted.

Indra lightly touched Winn’s arm. “Then let me show you something. If you’re worried about the kind of man you are traveling with, take a look in the kitchen.”

Winn leaned just past the doorway and blinked in surprise to see Dukat sitting across the table from Indra’s oldest daughter, explaining complex math equations to her. Winn moved back to face Indra. “He’s teaching her math?” she asked in a whisper.

Indra nodded. “This morning when I came down, I looked outside as Sten went out to do the farm work and saw your friend praying. Then your friend came back in the house and sat down at the kitchen table. Kali was at the table with her head in her hands and her math work in front of her. We homeschool them because we’re so far out of the city. Sten helps them with math. I’ve tried to help Kali, but before long, she and I loose our patience. Anyway, here was Kali at the table looking miserable, and here comes your friend. He asks her what the problem is. She tells him that she doesn’t understand the equations, and then he sits down and helps her make sense of it.”

“I wish I could make sense of it,” Winn muttered.

“I think in time the Prophets will show you what you need to know,” Indra said insightfully as they walked into the kitchen.

Kali looked up from her work and said good morning to Winn. Dukat looked over his shoulder. He had very rarely seen Winn looking so casual as she did in her friend’s dress. “I see you’ve found some new clothes.”

“Indra let me have a couple of dresses,” Winn explained while Indra went to the oven to check the kava rolls.

“Simple, yet workable. You look nice, Adami,” he remarked.

For a short second, she forgot that he was a Cardassian and smiled girlishly. “Thank you.”

Indra put the kava rolls on a plate and brought it out to the table. “Breakfast is ready, and jumja tea is almost ready,” she stated.

“Thank you again for your hospitality,” Dukat told his hostess.

Winn sat next to him as she had the previous evening, but she acknowledged mentally that he was a Cardassian and regarded him coolly. She talked to Indra and her children, but ignored Dukat. After breakfast was finished, Winn asked if Indra knew of a nearby town that they could purchase some additional food supplies at for their journey.

“Oh for pity’s sake. We are happy to share our food with you. How many days are you traveling for?” Indra offered.

“That’s very kind of you, but we don’t want to impose,” Winn began.

Indra shook her head. “Nonsense. I’m not sending an old friend out starving.”

She helped them choose food and soon they were packed. As they stood by the door, Indra asked, “By the way, where are you two going?”

Dukat opened his mouth to tell her that it was a classified matter, but Winn beat him to it. “I wish that I could tell you, but I cannot even tell close friends. It’s too big of a risk with the Circle.”

Indra put her hand on Winn’s shoulder. “I understand. I wish you both well on your journey. We’ve enjoyed your company. Drop by any time.”

“Thank you,” Winn said. “We wish you and your family well also.”

As they began the second day of their journey, the sky was a pleasant shade of blue with only a few clouds. Winn pondered the previous evening and the morning as they walked along the road. _He’s a Cardassian! Why did I let him compliment the dress? Why didn’t I just tell Indra? Because she might actually kill him and I can’t do that to him. Why are we even walking together? I could just tell him to take a different path, or take a different one myself. He lied to me, several times! But he actually was a good houseguest. And he helped Indra’s daughter with her math. I don’t understand. Why does he actually want to continue with this trip? Is he genuinely trying to do the will of the Prophets? What does he get out of this? Cardassians are always trying to see what they can get out of various situations. I might as well just ask him about it today._

She was going to ask him, but what she actually said was, “I didn’t know that you were so good at mathematics.”

_So she’s actually going to talk to me_ , he thought as he looked over at her. “On Cardassia, math and science are some of the most important aspects of education, along with military tactics and politics. Though the women usually pursue the sciences and the men usually look for political or military careers, it is important to learn about multiple subjects. Literature is important as well, but some of the teachers assume that children come to school already knowing the rules of grammar and spelling. Such teachers do not want to waste time on those things. As a result, my spelling was abominable for years.”

“Just when I thought you were about to tell me that Cardassians have the best educational system,” she said with a smirk.

“There’s always room for improvement in things like that, though Cardassia does have the best educational system. You should have seen what happened the first time I turned in a report to my senior officer. He gave me such a lecture on the importance of accuracy and correct spelling that you would think I had caused a ship collision!” Dukat admitted. Winn could not help laughing as she imagined a young Cardassian officer giving a report to his superior and having that officer berate him for his terrible spelling.

_If I have to be stuck out here with a Cardassian, at least he’s funny_ , she thought to herself.

They walked in silence for a while. The trail for the day had more tall grass, denser trees, and rustling sounds from small creatures. Dukat spoke, having grown tired of the silence. “I should have called you ‘Eminence’ back at your friends’ house. Is that what you would like me to call you from now on?”

She stopped walking and faced him. Could she really go back to that? It felt so distant, so divisive. “No. As close as we have been, hearing you use that title will make it feel like an insult, rather than a term of respect. You may continue using my given name.”

He nodded. As they resumed walking, he had an idea to break the silence. “My cousin was horrible at spelling too, by the way. It got him into a lot of trouble one summer when he tricked me into helping him out at a restaurant,” he paused, wondering if she would be interested in listening to stories again to pass the time.

She looked over at him. “Well don’t stop there. What happened?” she questioned.

“Are you sure you want to hear more stories about two miscreant Cardassian boys?” he probed.

“I think it’s preferable to other things we could discuss,” she responded. “What was his name?”

“Drumer. He had a part-time job at a restaurant as a waiter. He had a bit of a hearing problem, due to another one of his adventures, which I’ll tell you after this story, so if the room was crowded, he had trouble hearing the orders. He said that he would pay me a little of what he got if I would write down the orders for him. In theory, it wasn’t a bad idea. The problem was that some Cardassian dishes have very subtle changes in spelling. I wrote down what I thought the dishes were, showed them to Drumer, and took them to the cook. The glares my cousin received when he brought out the dishes were almost as terrifying as my father’s face that time Drumer and I went downtown without permission. Needless to say, he didn’t have that job for long.”

They had been walking for a few hours when they noticed a man trying to get a wagon with a broken wheel out of a ditch. Without hesitation, Dukat asked, “Excuse me, sir, would you like some help?”

The man had a stocky build, brownish gray hair, and a relieved smile. “Thank the Prophets! I’ve been stuck here for hours. Yes!” he answered.

He and Dukat were able to push the wagon out of the ditch. Pieces of the wheel were hanging off it and some of the screws were either loose or missing. “Do any of your neighbors use this road?” Winn asked him.

The man shook his head. “No. I’m not sure how I’m going to get home with that wheel.”

Dukat glanced at the bed of the wagon and then back to the man. “If you have any leather straps, I might be able to fix the wheel enough to get you to the next town,” he offered.

The man blinked in surprise. “If you can do that, then here are the straps,” he remarked.

Half an hour later, Dukat had fixed the wheel enough so that the man would be able to reach the next town. “I can’t thank you enough. Is there anything that I can do to repay you?” the man asked.

Dukat pulled out the map. “Actually we are trying to get here,” he paused to put his finger on a rural blob on the map. “Do you know if there are any towns on the way that we could spend the night at, or at least get a meal?”

The man raised an eyebrow. “That’s the middle of nowhere. Why would you want to go there?”

Winn tried to formulate a suitable answer, other than telling the man that it was either classified or none of his business. Dukat beat her to a response. “Family business.”

It was not the answer she would have given, but it seemed to satisfy the man. “I understand. It’s the only reason I’d be going to the middle of nowhere.” Then he turned his attention back to the map and traced a trail with his finger. “If you keep going this way, you should reach a town by sundown. There’s an inn there and they usually have room. You might be able to get to where you’re going by the end of tomorrow.”

“Thank you,” Dukat said to the man.

The man soon left and Dukat and Winn resumed walking. Winn decided that it was time to ask her question. “Why are you doing this?”

He sighed. “Because it’s the right thing to do, and it’s what the Prophets want.”

She raised an eyebrow. “You don’t get anything from your government for it?”

He scoffed. “My government and I parted ways long ago.”

“So your only motivation is to follow the Prophets?” she probed.

She still did not trust him; that much was clear in her questioning. He decided to take a different approach. “I’ve found that every time I do something for ambition, it ends horribly. I thought that it was time to try something different. Why keep trying the same thing if it doesn’t work? Maybe doing the right thing because it’s the right thing will have a better outcome.”

Whatever her views were about him, at least it felt like he had given her an honest answer. “And what outcome are you looking for?” she asked.

“One that doesn’t involve death and actually helps someone,” he responded.

She smiled at him. That was a good answer. As they walked along in silence, she continued her musings. _Could it be that this Cardassian is different than the ones that I’ve known? I suppose it’s time that I looked at my own motives. I’ve let ambition and arrogance lead me into all sorts of trouble. Perhaps it’s time that I started helping people instead of trying to get something out of it_.


	6. Ever-Present Danger

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” Noro Anton and Noro Eda are mine.

Chapter 6: Ever-Present Danger

As the sun was beginning to set, a town came into view. Lanterns lit the streets as shopkeepers began to close their doors. Winn and Dukat passed by for clothing ships, hardware supplies, a blacksmith, and feed stores. The rooftops were wooden shingles and the buildings were wooden. “It feels like stepping back in time,” Dukat mentioned.

“It’s what some towns in more rural parts of Bajor are like,” Winn responded.

Eventually they found a sign for the Katterpod Inn and it was open. Before they could enter, Dukat put a hand on Winn’s shoulder. “Are you certain that we should stay here? Staying at the first inn you see isn’t always the best idea.”

_Why is he questioning my judgment? He’s the one who is not from Bajor. Is he trying to control where we stay?_ “Do you really thing that I’ve made it all the way to being kai without knowing which establishments are safe to stay at and which ones are not?”

“I wouldn’t event suggest something like that. I am merely trying to help you,” he tried to persuade her.

“We are staying here,” she stated as she moved toward the door.

The old worn wooden door opened as they wandered into a tavern-like area with tables and chairs and a bar of sorts. The woman at the bar had a stout build, a permanent scowl, and skeptical brown eyes. Her black hair was loosely pinned up. “Can I help you two?” she asked.

Winn spoke. “We need two rooms for the night.”

The woman looked at Winn for a long moment, then pointed to a man at a desk by the staircase. His hair was completely gray. His painfully skinny hands held a pen as he stared down at a book of sorts. “Talk to Anton.”

The man referred to as “Anton” calmly looked up at the potential new guests. “Hello, I am Noro Anton. Are you two looking for a room?” he inquired politely.

Dukat opened his mouth to answer, but Winn beat him to it. _I am not letting a Cardassian determine where I sleep_ , she reasoned. “Two rooms, please,” Winn requested.

“How long are you staying?” he asked.

“One night,” she answered.

“Names?” he questioned.

“Anjohl Tennan and Kata Nerys,” Winn said quickly, deciding that fake names were a wise idea when dealing with strangers. Dukat raised an eyebrow at the speed of Winn’s replies.

Anton studied Winn for a moment and then wrote the information down in the book in front of him. “I’ll show you to your rooms. The woman at the bar is my wife, Eda. She serves dinner in a little while,” he explained.

They followed Anton to two rooms across from each other. The rooms were simple, each having a bed, nightstand, and a dresser. After he had gone back downstairs, Dukat walked over to Winn. “Was there some particular reason that you kept answering for the both of us? If you want to be inconspicuous, you really should let me speak.”

She crossed her arms. “You would have said that we were here on ‘family business’ and they would have given us one room.”

He sighed and shook his head. “First of all, that excuse happened to be the quickest thing that came to mind. Secondly, after the rooms question with Sten and Indra, I assumed that we would have two rooms wherever we stay.” He took a few steps closer to her to emphasize the next point that he wanted to make. “This has nothing to do with rooms.”

Winn faced him defiantly and said quietly, “Just because you’re a Cardassian does not automatically mean that you are in charge of our journey.”

Putting his hands up in defense, he responded, “I’m not trying to take charge of anything. I thought the Prophets were in charge of our journey.”

Perhaps he was telling the truth and he really did not intend to be in charge. “You may have a point, but I do not need you to speak for me."

“I’m supposed to be protecting you. I can’t do that if you don’t let me,” he argued. “Did you notice how they both looked at you? I think they might have recognized you.”

Winn scoffed. “They did not recognize me. My disguise is fine.”

She was going to be stubborn about this. He knew that she very much liked being right. “Let’s just get settled in and go down to dinner,” he conceded.

When they went downstairs for dinner, the meal was some sort of bland, grain-based stew with unseasoned vegetables. Dukat grimaced at every bite. “I wish we had some of your friend’s poison soup. Whatever this is, it’s revolting.”

Seeing his reaction to the meal eased her earlier mood and she decided that remaining upset with him that evening was a waste of time. She chuckled. “It wasn’t poison, but I agree. I would much rather be eating her stew than this concoction.”

_At least her mood seems to have improved_. “Actually, why don’t we just leave this and eat what she packed for us?” he suggested, pushing his bowl away.

“Agreed,” she replied, leaving the table.

The two walked upstairs and ate makaba bread and kava fruit. “This is much better,” Dukat mentioned.

Winn nodded. “Perhaps we can buy some fruit from the local market tomorrow before continuing our journey.”

The two ended up exchanging stories about Lilan and Drumer again and eventually retired to their separate rooms for the evening. However, in the middle of the night Dukat was unable to sleep. He rose and dressed, deciding to walk down to the bar to see what they had to drink. As he walked down the stairs, he took his steps quietly so that the stairs did not creak.

He saw no one over at the bar, but he did see a door open by the other wall. Curiosity took over and he carefully neared the door. A quick peak in revealed Eda and Anton talking to someone on a viewscreen.

“The kai is here with some guy,” Anton stated.

The voice on the viewscreen sounded surprised. “Are you sure? Remains were found at the estate.”

“She looks a bit different, but it’s definitely her,” Eda added.

“Jaro will be pleased. Keep them where they are at and the Circle will collect her in the morning,” the voice instructed.

“What if she doesn’t agree? What if she declines his offer?” Anton inquired, fingering a Bajoran phaser rifle that rested on the end table next to him.

The voice sounded bored. “Then she becomes expendable.”

Dukat backed away silently, but overheard one more part as he was leaving. Anton asked, “What about the man she is with?”

“He’s of no concern to us. Shoot him,” the voice advised.

Dukat sneaked into the room that Winn was staying in and touched her shoulders. “Adami. Adami, we have to go,” he whispered.

She blinked at sat up, staring at him in puzzlement. “Gosrin, what… what is going on? What time is it?”

“We have to leave now. They recognized you. I overheard them talking. They’re going to turn you over to the Circle,” he relayed. “I’ll let you dress while I get my bag.”

She had taken to sleeping in the white garment. She quickly changed into the maroon dress and met Dukat out in the hall. “Why didn’t you grab the broom handles?”

“I know that they have at least a Bajoran phaser rifle. Broom handles are not going to work against that,” he explained.

Winn looked around the area as worry crept into her mind. “Is there a backway out?”

“I don’t know, but if we’re quiet enough, we might be able to get by unnoticed,” he suggested.

“I really hope you’re right,” she expressed as they walked toward the staircase.

They crept downstairs quietly, noticing that the desk and the bar were still unoccupied. As they reached the front door, however, they heard Eda say, “Not so fast, Kai Winn.”

Instead of stopping, they hurried their pace and ran out the front door, into the quiet street. “Stop or we’ll shoot,” Eda demanded.

“Run, Adami. Run, and don’t look back!” Dukat instructed.

He had strategically placed her in front of him, knowing that Eda and Anton would shoot at him, but not at Winn. A Bajoran phaser rifle fired, but missed. They ran from the street into the woods. Another phaser rifle shot went past them, but struck a tree. A branch fell almost on top of them. Dukat suddenly tripped. Winn stopped to help him and another beam from the phaser rifle went by.

“Are you alright?” she asked him.

“Yes, but we have to keep running!” he told her.

She was about to run again when the beam from the rifle intended for Dukat went past him and suddenly struck her in the shoulder. She cried out in pain. He grabbed her by the waist and dragged her deeper into the woods.

A few minutes later, they no longer heard the phase rifle, or footsteps. Dukat stopped to examine Winn’s shoulder. It was singed and she was bleeding. “We have to get you to a doctor,” he realized aloud.


	7. Allies

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” Dr. Tomora Dathan is mine. The episode, “Sons and Daughters” is alluded to. “Indiscretion” is also alluded to.

Chapter 7: Allies

“Do you even know where we are?” Winn asked.

Dukat sighed and looked around. “Not exactly, but I think if we go that way,” he paused and pointed, “I think I see a few buildings. It might be the next town.”

Carefully they walked along a footpath, Winn leaning heavily on Dukat. As he had hoped, they found a town, similar in appearance to the last one, but near the footpath was a sign for a doctor’s office. Noticing that it was a two-story building, Dukat hoped that the doctor might live directly above his practice. He helped Winn sit down on a bench near the door.

He knocked several times without receiving an answer. “What if there’s no one here?” Winn asked.

Dukat looked over to her. “Then I’ll knock on every door in this town until I find another doctor. I’m not letting you bleed to death.”

His determination caught her by surprise. After a few minutes, a light came on in an upstairs room, followed by the sound of someone walking down the stairs. A grumpy, middle-aged Bajoran man with brown hair opened the door. “I hope this is important.”

“My friend needs help,” he said, gesturing to Winn.

The doctor’s brow furrowed as he eyed the bloody wound on her shoulder. “Well, get her inside then,” he said, ushering them both into the room before closing the door.

There were a few chairs a couch, and a desk, arranged to be a waiting room of sorts. The doctor escorted them into one of two back rooms that had an examination chair, his medical tools, and two other chairs. He gestured for Winn to sit in the examination chair. Dukat held one of her hands in his protectively as she sat down.

The doctor held something similar to a medical tricorder up to Winn’s shoulder. “What happened?” he inquired.

“It was a hunting accident,” Dukat stated quickly.

Turning on a medical tool that healed the burn and knit the skin together, the doctor spoke again. “What were you hunting at this hour?”

Dukat knew that he had to answer quickly in order to avoid further inquiries, but he could not think of what animals they could have possibly encountered. Then he remembered a small creature that glided from branch to branch, and was an absolute nuisance to anyone who had food. “Squam,” he replied.

The doctor looked over at him and raised an eyebrow. “Squam? That’s what the Cardassians called them.”

Dukat remained calm, giving nothing away. “Ligos, I meant. Sometimes words stick in your head when you hear them. The way they steal food right out of your bag, I thought that ‘squam’ sounded like a better name for them.”

His answer received a satisfied nod from the doctor as the dermal regenerator was used on Winn’s shoulder. “Almost done here. I even have something to fix the dress,” he remarked.

“Thank you very much, Doctor,” Winn stated.

“I’m Dr. Tomora Dathan, by the way,” the doctor introduced.

“I’m Anjohl Tennan and this is Kata Nerys,” Dukat told the doctor. Then he glanced around the room. “I know that we’ve already imposed on you enough for this evening, but would it be possible to stay here until dawn? It’s a very long way in the dark back to our home.”

The doctor raised an eyebrow. “I guess so. There’s the couch in the waiting area and then there’s another couch in the room across the hall.”

Winn opened her bag to look for the money that she had brought and frowned. “What’s wrong?” Dukat asked.

“I didn’t have much with me to begin with, but I think what little I did have got left at the inn,” she admitted.

“Which could be a problem,” Dukat added.

“Unfortunately we have no way of paying you at the moment,” Winn mentioned to the doctor.

The doctor thought for a moment and faced Dukat. “Are you any good at fixing things?”

Dukat raised an eyebrow. “Somewhat.”

“Tell you what. My sink leaks something awful. If you fix my sink, we’ll call it even,” the doctor offered.

“Done,” Dukat responded, already looking for the sink.

Tomora allowed Winn to sleep in the other back room. As Dukat was fixing the sink, Tomora spoke to him. “I know you said she was your friend, but you two seem closer than that, so I’m just going to ask. Is she your wife?” he asked, referring to Winn.

_If only I wasn’t Cardassian_. “No,” Dukat answered.

“Is she someone else’s wife?” the doctor probed.

“No!” Dukat replied as water sprayed him in the face.

“You weren’t hunting, were you? Ligos are not nocturnal, and wounds like the one she had don’t happen by accident,” Tomora pointed out.

Dukat sighed and looked at the doctor. Though he did not like the inquiry, his instincts told him that he could trust this man. “Her past is catching up with her. I’m trying to protect her. Obviously that’s not going so well.”

“Life is like that. You can plan, but what actually happens is usually not what you expect,” the doctor pointed out.

“Then what do you recommend?” Dukat inquired, sifting through the tools to find what he needed.

“You have to plan, but keep in mind that the unexpected will happen and make sure you always have other options,” Tomora suggested. “If you’ve got a map with you, I might be able to show you a way to get where you’re going that avoids popular paths.”

“That should do it for the sink,” Dukat remarked, standing. He quickly retrieved the map and Tomora looked it over.

“This is where we are. If you really want to go to that spot where you’ve pointed, take this path here. It’s fifteen miles, but you shouldn’t run into anyone,” the doctor recommended.

“Thank you,” Dukat said. As he refolded the map, he realized that if he and Winn were followed at all, the doctor might be questioned. “What could I fix for you to say that you haven’t seen us if you are asked?”

“Seen who? It’s not as if you were a Cardassian,” the doctor remarked. Both he and Dukat smirked, though in that instant, Dukat was glad that he had not been injured. Had it been Dukat with the wound, the doctor would have known that he was indeed a Cardassian. Tomora regarded Dukat thoughtfully. “The hinges on my back door are falling off. Take the toolbox with you.”

Dukat fixed the back door and then slept on the couch in the waiting area. Later when Winn woke at dawn, they thanked the doctor for his hospitality and resumed their journey to the Tozhat Resettlement Center. They still had a little food from Indra, which they ate along the way. Dukat spoke when they were out of town. “You’ve been awfully quiet, and you let me talk to the doctor,” he commented.

“My shoulder hurt too much for me to come up with an explanation for him,” she admitted. “By the way, thank you for waking him, and for seeing that things were taken care of.”

“You were bleeding, so we had little choice if we wanted to continue our journey. As it was, my explanation didn’t exactly satisfy him. Apparently ligos sleep at night,” Dukat mentioned.

She smirked. “And you called them ‘squam.’”

“I’ll have to find some better excuses for the next time we end up in trouble,” he stated.

“Hopefully there won’t be a next time,” she remarked. Then she sighed. “I’m sorry for almost getting us killed.”

“Apology accepted. Now will you finally trust me?” he probed.

She stopped walking and faced him. “Put yourself in my shoes, in any Bajoran’s shoes instead of their skin, for five minutes! Imagine that you were on the other side of the Occupation and ask yourself if you would trust a Cardassian after fifty years of that.”

_She has a point, but we have a greater purpose here_. “Do you trust the Prophets? They spoke to both of us. If you don’t trust me, trust them,” he reminded. “Ask yourself what the goal of this journey is. We are supposed to help the war orphans.”

_He has a point. I have been too focused on my own discomfort. I’ve forgotten that our objective is to help the children_. Sighing heavily, she asked him, “What do you suggest?”

He took her hands in his, as if to emphasize what he was about to say. “I am doing my best to protect you. I know it’s a lot to ask you to trust me, after what my people have done, and after what I did, but trust me in this: if you let me, I will see that you reach the resettlement center safely. Will you let me help you finish this journey?”

_He has proved that he is trying to protect me. The harm I’ve come to so far has been my own fault. Perhaps I can trust him a little_ , she mentally conceded. She found herself nodding and saying, “Yes.”

The trip was fortunately uneventful. To pass the time, they talked of likes and dislikes with regard to musical styles, food, preferred methods of traveling, weather, and pets. They had been walking for several hours when the events of the previous evening caught up with Winn. She let out an exhausted breath and sat down on a fallen log. Dukat joined her.

“Is your shoulder bothering you?” he inquired.

She shook her head. “No. I’m just tired. Can you tell how much farther we have to go?”

He unfolded the map and studied it for a moment. “If our pace is the same as it was yesterday, we have been walking for about ten miles, which means that we have five miles to go.”

“If I didn’t despise sleeping outside, I would stay here for the night,” she grumbled. “I wish we hadn’t left the broom handles at the inn. They would have made good walking sticks.”

“They wouldn’t have done us any good against the phaser rifles though,” he mentioned.

“Do we have any of Indra’s food left?” Winn asked.

Dukat checked her bag and his, shaking his head. “Unfortunately not.”

She sighed heavily and stood. “Then we’ll have to reach the resettlement center by tonight.”

“Why don’t you take my arm?” he offered.

Too tired to argue, she did as he suggested and the two resumed their trek toward the resettlement center. As they walked, in the back of Winn’s mind, she was slightly comforted, having him there to hold onto. In an odd way, he was starting to become something reassuring instead of something to be wary of.

At last, the Tozhat Resettlement Center finally came into view. The buildings were white, square, and built more for efficiency than aesthetics. Winn and Dukat passed through double doors to find a woman in her forties with black hair and friendly brown eyes. “Hello, may I help you?”

“Yes. We’ve come a long way to warn you. A xenophobic group known as the Circle could be targeting this facility,” Winn told her.

The woman blinked in surprise. Then she studied Winn. “Who are you? How do you know this?”

“I’m Kai Winn, and this is Anjohl Tennan,” Winn answered.

Eyes widening, the woman spoke again. “I’m Deela. Pardon my surprise at seeing you, Eminence, but the government and the religious orders have ignored us for years.”

“A terrible oversight that I intent to remedy. You asked how I know what I have told you. The Prophets spoke to me and showed me that you will need help,” Winn explained.

Deela sighed. “I will speak to my staff. Evacuation is not as simple as you might think. We have forty orphans here, ranging from ages seven to thirteen. We don’t have anywhere off hand that would want to take in that many Cardassians.”

“I thought they were mostly young children,” Winn mentioned.

“They were, but it’s been nearly six years since the end of the Occupation,” Deela told them.

“Are you in contact with Deep Space 9?” Dukat inquired.

Deela looked over at him and studied him, as if having not noticed him before. “We were, but our communications grid has been down for some time.”

“If you let me take a look at it, I might be able to fix it,” Dukat offered.

“I suppose that would be alright,” Deela replied.

She took Dukat and Winn to a room with filing cabinets and two computers. “This one here,” Deela pointed to the screen on the left, “is for our database. It runs well. This one here, however,” she pointed to the one on the right, “hasn’t worked right in years.”

The wires were a tangled mess. Dukat tried to turn it on, but nothing happened. “This might take a while. I suspect that something is unplugged.”

Winn’s stomach suddenly growled. She glanced away, slightly embarrassed. “While Anjohl works with the computer, perhaps you would like to join us for dinner, Kai Winn?” Deela suggested.

“I would, thank you,” Winn responded. “Would it be alright if I brought a plate out for him?”

“Of course,” Deela replied.

Winn followed Deela into a cafeteria and ate dinner, watching the children interact with one another. Her eyes darted around the room, trying to find the half-Cardassian, half-Bajoran girl with hazel-blue eyes from her vision. “Are you looking for someone?” Deela inquired.

“I’m not sure. Do you have any children who are half-Cardassian and half-Bajoran?” Winn questioned.

The other woman shook her head. “Children like that are even less accepted than war orphans.”

_Then who did I see? I wonder how that girl factors in to all this_ ,” Winn pondered. Deela used the dinner time to meet with her staff and explain the situation. Later Winn came back to the building with a plate of food.

Dukat looked up as she approached. “Thank you. I’m famished,” he said as he accepted the plate.

“So was I. Deela spoke with her staff. They think our best option is to call on Deep Space 9. In the meantime, she and the others will take turns watching the perimeter of this place,” Winn relayed.

Stopping to eat his food, Dukat nodded. “I suppose it’s better than nothing. I think I’ve found the right wires. I just need this to reboot so that I can see what needs to be doe next.”

“How long will that take?” she inquired.

“The system is old and needs to run diagnostics as it boots. It’ll be at least an hour. Once it’s up, I have to run more diagnostics, update it, and figure out why it seems to have such a low level of connectivity,” he explained.

“Sounds like a good time for a break,” she recommended. He nodded and ate his dinner.

They sat in the courtyard after dinner. As Winn watched the children playing, she remembered something. “You said that your government made you leave the orphans here. What did you mean?” Winn asked.

“I had to follow orders. I was in charge of what went on at Terok Nor and Bajor. I tried to make things more bearable. They were beating some of your people for following the Prophets. When I found that out, I put a stop to it. I should have done more, but my arrogance kept getting in the way,” Dukat explained.

She realized with painful clarity that only one man, one Cardassian would have had that much power and authority. “The Prefect of Bajor,” she said quietly as she turned to face him and glared at him. “You were the Prefect of Bajor. Why do the Prophets want you?”

He heard the acidity in her tone. Strangely, while she had recognized his position, she had not recognized him. “They have forgiven me. I know that I should not expect the same from you. I know my crimes against the Bajoran people, and so many others. The Prophets also told me that I had to help you, and that I had to tell you the truth about who I am. They also wanted me to protect you and the war orphans.”

While she could see his sincerity, it did not excuse his many crimes. “What do you want?”

He took a deep breath and folded his hands in front of him. “As I’ve said before, I want to follow the will of the Prophets and help these orphans. I want to be a better man and do something right. My arrogance and pride got in the way of any good I was trying to do. I thought that I was right, that what I was doing was right,” he paused and looked away. “I was blind. My daughter tried to help me, to tell me that it was wrong. In the end, my arrogance cost my daughter her life. If I had a way to get her back, if I could exchange my life for hers, I would do it. As I’ve told the Prophets, I don’t want my daughter’s death to be meaningless.”

Winn should have been angry with him. He had tricked her. He had committed terrible crimes against her people. As she listened to him though, she could see that the man who had been the Prefect of Bajor, one of the most hated Cardassians of the Occupation, was in fact vulnerable, and repentant. He had acknowledged his faults, and he wanted to do something good, not for himself, not for his ego, but for the sake of doing something good. Then there was the daughter that he so obviously loved. For all the contempt she had for Cardassians, particularly ones that had prominent rolls in the Occupation, she could not find it in herself to hate this man. The loss of a child was something that she had never experienced and would never wish on anyone else, having seen the affects from people she had known.

As Dukat faced Winn, he had expected to see anger, hatred, and disgust. What he had not expected to see were pity and compassion. As she looked at him, she concluded that her previous analysis had been correct: he had lost more than she had. “You’ve done some horrible things, but even you didn’t deserve to lose a child. I’m sorry for your loss,” she said simply. “Tell me, if you don’t mind, what was she like?”

He rested his hands on his knees and sat back, not looking at anything in particular. “Her name was Ziyal. Her mother was my mistress, but we did love each other. I was married, but it was an arranged marriage.” He told Winn about the _Ravinok_ and finding Ziyal. “When I took her back with me to Cardassia to claim her as my daughter, I was publically disgraced, demoted and my wife divorced me. She took the other children. They preferred to stay with her. Ziyal was strong, clever, and independent. She was an artist. I still have her work.” He went back go where he had left his bag, near the computers. When he returned, he carefully brought out a few cylindrical containers and opened them, unrolling the paintings.

Winn looked over them and smiled appreciatively. “These are beautiful.”

“Thank you. I always keep these with me,” Dukat said. “She wanted to use her work to bring people together. The techniques she used look like work from the Cardassian painter Nanpart Malor, as well as the Bajoran artist, Vedek Topek.”

As he put the paintings away, Winn spoke again. “So she was half-Bajoran?”

“Yes. Her full name was Tora Ziyal,” Dukat admitted.

_Perhaps that was the girl in the vision from the Prophets_ , Winn thought to herself.

(A/N: Ligos are flying chipmunks that are as aggressive at getting people’s food as seagulls).


	8. A Conundrum

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.”

Chapter 8: A Conundrum

Winn woke in an unfamiliar room with a bed, nightstand, closet, and a mirror with a table. Seeing her bag on the floor, she recalled that Deela had given two extra rooms to Winn and Dukat after they had returned from their discussion outside. As Winn sat up, she began sneezing. Seeing the window open to the morning breeze, she rose and shut the window, figuring that she was allergic to something outside. The sneezing seemed to subside after she had dressed. Since her identity here was not a secret, she decided to dress in her gold kai robes again. However, the region was warmer than the capital had been and the robes felt almost too warm. The dresses that she had borrowed from Indra were more suited to the climate. She braided her hair in her customary double twist knot near the base of her neck.

She found Dukat at the cafeteria, waiting to enter for breakfast. Deela greeted them when they passed her. As they ate, the children began to take notice of them. One girl kept staring at Winn, standing close by. Winn looked up at the girl and smiled politely. “Hello child. Was there something you wanted?”

The girl, who was about eight years hold, clasped her hands in front of her and turned her head to one side. “I like your hair. Can you braid mine like that?”

Winn smiled warmly at the girl’s simple request. “Right after I finish eating.”

“Okay,” the girl said, returning to her seat.

Dukat chuckled and Winn raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“You’re about to be very popular. I’ll bet that once you start braiding that one’s hair, a line of several girls will form,” he remarked.

After breakfast, she headed outside with the girl while he returned to the computer. Every once in a while he glanced out of the window. As he had predicted, Winn soon had a long line of girls wanting their hair braided into all sorts of different styles. After she had finished with the tenth girl’s hair, Winn searched for Deela to ask her a few questions.

She found her in a room resembling a classroom, with tables put together, an electronic board, and various school supplies. “Hello Deela,” Winn greeted.

Deela looked up from the bookshelf that she was rearranging. “Hello, Kai Winn. How is your morning going so far?”

“Fine, thank you. I just spent quite a while braiding several girls’ hair,” Winn admitted.

Deela grinned. “I saw one talking to you at breakfast. I’m glad you didn’t mind.”

“It was no trouble. I actually wanted to ask you, what sort of education do they receive here?” Winn inquired.

The other woman walked over to a desk and removed an electronic pad. “The children are separated by grade level. We used to have a few volunteer teachers. They left us lesson plans.”

Winn scanned the electronic pad with interest. “It looks efficient. Do they have school today?”

“No. They have two days a week off, and this is an off day,” Deela answered.

“That’s good. I just wanted to see-” Winn was interrupted by a bout of sneezing.

“Are you alright, Kai Winn?” Deela questioned.

Winn waved off her concern as the sneezing dissipated. “I woke up sneezing and noticed that I left the window open last night. I don’t recall sneezing when I arrived. Is there some sort of plant that blooms in the early morning? I might be allergic to something here.”

“Not that I know of,” Deela relayed. “However, there is a local doctor who might be able to help with allergies. If you take the path around the back side of this facility for about ten minutes, you should find a town. The doctor’s office is fairly visible from there.”

“Thank you. I’ll have to stop over there tomorrow,” Winn concluded. She glanced at some of the students’ projects that had been hung on the walls, mostly collages and drawings. “What happens to them when they come of age?”

Deela sighed and folded her hands in front of her. “If they have been adopted, then perhaps their new parents can help them. For those that remain here, we have very few options to train them. Because they are Cardassian, none of the local businesses or vendors wants to train them. The children themselves are ostracized for crimes committed by their parents or grandparents. Some of the older ones ask if they can have surgery someday so that people won’t hate them.”

“Could they possibly be taken back to Cardassia?” Winn inquired.

The other woman shook her head. “The Cardassians left them here. They have no relatives, no one to go back to. Also, they are culturally Bajoran and would be no more welcomed on Cardassia than they are here.”

Winn looked at Deela pensively. “Then what’s to become of them?”

“I really don’t know. They are going to face hate wherever they go. I wish that there was another option for them,” Deela stated regretfully.

After talking with Deela, Winn went in search of Dukat. When she looked into another converted classroom, she found him reading to a small group of children _. One of them probably asked for a story and then more came, much like the girls who wanted their hair braided_ , Winn mused. She decided to walk the grounds for a while, looking for the flower or root that could be causing her allergies.

Later she was unable to find anything that gave her any trouble. She looked out onto the field near the cafeteria to see some of the older children playing some sort of ball game. To her surprise, she noticed Dukat out with them, helping them and checking that the terrain was safe for the game, that the ground had no holes from rodents or sharp objects. He was waiting for something else for the computer to load and decided to help the children while he waited.

Winn decided to spend the rest of the day assessing the curriculum and figuring out what else the children might need to find careers after they leave the resettlement center. Lunch came and went. In the afternoon, Winn took a break and wandered by a shaded outdoor area near the courtyard.

She passed by a table where a girl sat tinkering with some sort of robot model and a remote control. The girl sighed in frustration and ran a hand through her hair. “What’s wrong, child?” Winn asked.

The girl faced her. “I can’t fix it. I’ve been trying all day, but it just won’t work. “

Dukat had decided to leave the computer for a moment and walked over to Winn in time to hear the girl. He sat down next to her. “Maybe I can help,” he suggested.

“Okay,” the girl said as she passed the robot and the tools to him.

“What is it supposed to do?” Winn inquired.

“It’s supposed to do tricks and flips, but it fell on the floor the last time we had an earthquake. I don’t think it’s broken, but I can’t fix it,” the girl explained.

“It sounds like something is disconnected,” Dukat remarked, tinkering with the robot. After a while, he tried the remote and the robot did a few cartwheels.

The girl’s face lit up as she grinned. “It works! Thank you!”

He smiled back. “You’re welcome.”

Dukat and Winn walked away from the girl. “You’ve fixed a lot of things since we set out on this journey. When did you learn to be so good at fixing things?”

He smirked. “I commandeered a Klingon bird-of-prey for a while, when the Cardassians and the Klingons were at war. I learned how to fix many things during that time because I had no one else to fix them for me.”

She raised an eyebrow. “You’ve led quite an interesting life, haven’t you?”

“You could say that,” he responded.

“You seem to work well with children. I can’t help wondering why you were not a teacher or a professor of sorts,” she remarked.

He paused in thought for a moment. _I suppose that could have been a satisfying life_. “Cardassian careers don’t work that way. Often Cardassians teach at the close of their careers in order to relate lessons to experience. What have you been up to?”

“I was actually searching for a plant that I might be allergic to, but I have also been talking to Deela and inquiring about the children’s education,” she began. She walked over to a table and sat down. He followed her, noticing her worried expression.

“I suspect that you found something you disagree with,” he observed.

She sighed, folding her hands on the table. “What they are learning is acceptable, but it could be more extensive and more developed. A few more teaches might help. However, there is little hope for them once they come of age. The vendors and local businesses want nothing to do with them because they are Cardassian. They cannot return to Cardassia because they are culturally Bajoran. All these children are trapped between two cultures with little hope of succeeding in life.”

“What if they were sent to Lissepia? They could start new lives there. The citizens are kinder to alien species than other places,” Dukat suggested.

Winn shook her head. “It would be too foreign, too unfamiliar to them. They need a closer option, somewhere that has multiple cultures and a diverse list of career options.”

He stood and paced for a moment. Then he turned back to her with an idea. “We’ve overlooked something obvious, and much closer than Lissepia. What about the space station? Several species with varying jobs have businesses there. Learning trades there would give the children far greater opportunities than anything they will find on Bajor.”

She folded her arms, considering his suggestion thoughtfully. “They would need funding to live on the station. The government has spent as little as possible on the resettlement center as it is. It is not likely that they want to fund two locations.”

“What if the school was moved to the space station as well?” he suggested.

“An idea such as that requires extensive planning. Someone would have to coordinate and arrange funding. They would need quarters to stay in and a classroom at the very least. The curriculum would have to be revised to ensure that they would be learning basic skills to help them comprehend whatever trade fields they wish to try. It would take someone’s full-time attention,” she reasoned.

He smiled and faced her. “Then it’s good that we know someone who is very good at planning. You are excellent at organizing things like this.”

Her brow furrowed. “But this would take all of my time. I would have to resign as kai to even begin taking the rudimentary steps of this idea.”

“Far be it from me to tell you what to do on this, but I think it’s something that you should consider. I have to get back to that computer console,” he stated

Winn stood. “I have some thinking to do,” she said before walking outside.

_To resign as kai to help run a school for these children and help them find career paths afterward, that was not quite what I was planning when this journey began. It’s true that these children need more than they are receiving here, but am I the one to help them? What if Bajor still needs me? I’m the kai, the spiritual leader of Bajor, but what have I spiritually led them to so far? I’ve been a spiritual mess who was willing to lead them down the wrong path because of my own arrogance,_ she thought to herself as she wandered into the courtyard.

She noticed an older boy of about thirteen sitting on a bench, hunched over with his elbows on his thighs. Meandering along the path, she sat next to him. “Hello. You seem a little down. Are you alright?”

He looked over at her and then sat up straight. “You’re the kai, aren’t you.? The carers said that you were here.”

“That is correct. What is your name?” she inquired.

“The carers said that my name was Daiven when I came here, but they call me Li Oram,” he told her.

“What troubles you, Li?” she questioned.

He sighed heavily and looked out at the courtyard as he spoke. “They take us into town sometimes when they buy food, the carers. The Bajoran children don’t like us. They stare at us and call us names. The Cardassians who left us here did horrible things, but we haven’t done those things. The carers teach us to respect all life. Why are the Bajoran children taught to hate us?” the boy asked her.

She had not expected a question like that. _This is wrong. How are these children ever going to succeed in their lives if no one lets them? Where does it stop? It stops with me_ , she decided. “People are afraid and don’t want history to be repeated, but that doesn’t mean that they should mistreat you because of that fear. What would you say if you could live on the space station and learn a trade from the vendors or businesses there?”

The boy’s face lit up. “That would be great! I could find a job in space! I’ve never been in space before! Could you really do that?” he probed.

“We’re working on it,” she replied. Hearing the dinner chimes sounded, so she headed to the cafeteria, deciding to bring out a plate for Dukat if she did not see him there.

She ate her dinner, watching the children as they talked and laughed together. _Someone needs to make things right, not for credit or to gain favor, but because it’s the right thing to do. They can’t stay here like this_ , she reasoned.

Later she headed toward the main building with Dukat’s plate. As she opened the door, she followed the sound of grumbling over to the computer console. Dukat was under the desk, ensconced in wires, trying to unscrew a few panels, but the wires kept getting in his way. Watching the former Prefect of Bajor become more tangled in the wires by the minute caused her to smirk. Soon the smirk morphed into laughter.

He raised an eyebrow through the jungle of wires. “I’m glad you find this amusing,” he retorted.

Clearing her throat, she inched toward him. “Would you like a hand? I can probably hold some of those out of the way for you.”

“If it’s not too inconvenient, yes!” he replied adamantly.

Setting his plate down on the desk, she held the wires out of his way so that he could see what he needed to. “I brought you dinner,” she mentioned.

“Thank you. I think I’ve had enough of this mess for now. I could use a break,” he remarked, moving out from under the desk.

He sat in one chair to eat while she sat in another. “Is the communications grid reparable?” she inquired.

“Sort of. I have to rebuild parts of the computer. I think they have the parts here; it’s just taking a while,” he explained, taking a few bites of his food. He spoke again when he had almost finished. “Adami, whoever set up the communications grid gave them the bare minimum. From what I’ve seen so far, no one wanted to help any more than was necessary for survival. We can’t leave them like this. They are very fortunate that they haven’t had much of a need for the communications grid so far.”

Glancing out the window at the children playing, she said, “I agree. My government has failed them. I won’t.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What will you do?”

She sighed and at back in the chair. “I’m not sure yet. I’m still thinking it over.”

Soon he finished eating and resumed his struggle with the computer console. As she continued to watch him work, a strange realization came over her. She was starting to grow fond of her traveling companion. There was something reassuring about having him there. Had she simply grown used to his presence? No. Somehow it was more than that. She would miss him when the time came for them to eventually part ways.


	9. A New Paradigm

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” The Bajoran civil police wear brown uniforms in this story.

Chapter 9: A New Paradigm

The sun slipped in through the window of Winn’s room the next day. With the sounds of small animals waking outside and a comfortable breeze blowing, it was a nice morning, or at least it would have been, had Winn not awakened with a bout of sneezing. When the sneezing subsided, she noticed that she had left the window open again.

“I really must remember to shut that window,” she reminded herself with an irritated sigh as she dressed and walked over to it. She glanced out of the window to see that the weather looked pleasant. Seeing Dukat outside, she decided to go out to him.

Dukat was already up and working with the computer again. Frustrated with how much time it was taking to fix it, he had stepped outside. He looked over to see Winn emerge from the main building. Instead of the gold kai robes, she was wearing the dark blue dress. The style was similar to the maroon dress, but the color brought out her hazel-blue eyes. Her golden blonde hair was in a single braid at first glance, but as she came closer, he could see that she had also braided one strand of hair at each temple and then circled the two small braids around the top of her head. She smiled pleasantly at him.

_She is stunning, even in something so simple_. “Beautiful,” he said aloud.

Winn blushed and stated, “It’s just a dress.”

Dukat cleared his throat. “I didn’t realize I had said it aloud. The maroon dress looked nice, but this one really brings out your eyes.”

“Thank you,” she responded.

“And then there’s your hair. You like to braid it in clever ways,” he remarked.

She shrugged. “It’s something fun to do. I don’t like to leave it just down.” Then she looked at the computer console. “You look as though you’ve gone to battle with that computer already this morning.”

He chuckled. “That’s an accurate assessment. Just when I think I’ve found the problem, something else turns up.”

“Then it sounds like a good time for breakfast,” she suggested.

In the cafeteria, they sat with Deela and the other carers. “Are you able to repair the communications grid?” the brunette asked.

Dukat sighed as he took a bite of moba fruit. “Yes, but it’s still going to take a while. It might be a good idea in the meantime if you can find someplace nearby that you can evacuate the children to.”

“They should also pack some things in case they have to leave sooner, rather than later,” Winn suggested.

“That can be arranged, but as I’ve told you before, the nearby towns don’t like the children. I doubt if anyone would be willing to help them hide if the resettlement center is under attack,” Deela pointed out.

“Someone should go into the town and talk to the local law enforcement officers,” Dukat recommended.

Deela scoffed. “I can show you the path to reach the nearest town, but I doubt if the Bajoran civil police would be willing to listen to us.”

“They might listen to me. I am the kai,” Winn added.

Dukat shook his head. “You need to stay here. I think that I should talk to them. If I show you how to run a diagnostic program, do you think you could keep an eye on the computer console while I go into town?”

Winn would rather have gone into town, but she concluded that he was correct and that maintaining a low profile would be the best plan of action. “It shouldn’t be too difficult.” After breakfast, Dukat showed Winn what she needed to do and then followed the path that Deela showed him that led to the town.

He glanced down a few streets to try to find someone who looked like a law enforcement official. Finally he saw one in the familiar brown uniform of a Bajoran civil policeman, mediating some sort of conflict between two men who had food carts. Eventually the two men shook hands and the official walked away. Dukat caught up to the man.

“Pardon me, sir, but do you have time for a question?” Dukat began.

The law official raised an eyebrow and studied Dukat. “As long as it’s a short question.”

“Is there somewhere for the children at the resettlement center to go in the case of an emergency?” Dukat inquired.

The law official snorted. “Those vermin? You must be joking. They aren’t welcome here. Nobody wants them around.”

Dukat’s eyes widened. “But they’re children! How can you say that?”

“Where have you been for the last fifty years? They’re Cardassians! They’ll grow up to be just like their parents and grandparents. It’s only a matter of time,” the man retorted.

“So there’s no help for them?” Dukat probed.

“We never wanted them here. The government just dropped them on our doorstep,” the man commented. Then, as if having something better to do, he walked away.

Dukat considered punching the officer, but he surmised that an action of that sort might draw too much unwanted attention. As headed back to the center, Dukat reflected on the encounter with the law official. _No one will help those children. I can’t leave them like this. Someone has to do something. I abandoned them once. I won’t abandon them again_ , he decided. Instead of returning to the resettlement center immediately, he decided to see if there were any public places that were unused or semi-hidden that the children could use temporarily to hide if necessary.

As Winn sat in the chair watching the computer console, she glanced out of the window occasionally, looking for Dukat. After a couple of hours, she stood and began to pace the room, moving between the console and the window. _He should have been back by now. What’s taking him so long?_ The more she paced, the more she began to worry. _What if he said something and they figured out that he’s a Cardassian? Or what if the Circle caught up to him because of me?_

The more she thought about what might have happened to him, the more she came to another realization. He was not just a Cardassian; he was Gosrin and he had become a friend, a friend that she was not going to lose to local prejudices. _If he isn’t back in the next hour, I’m going to find him myself, kai or not_ , she decided. _For all I know, they could have him in a holding cell somewhere._

She turned back to look at the computer again. Some of the diagnostics had finished. As she saw how much time was left for a few other programs, she heard footsteps. Turning to see who it was, she sighed with relief at seeing Dukat. “Oh good, you’re back.”

He raised an eyebrow. Had she actually been concerned about him? “I wasn’t gone that long.”

“You’ve been gone for at least two hours,” she pointed out.

Leaning over her, he studied the computer to see how far things had progressed. “I had a very unproductive chat with a Bajoran civil police officer, so then I decided to see if there might be alternative ways of evacuating everyone here.”

“That makes sense,” she commented as she stood.

He took the chair and began to load another program. “Were you actually worried about me?” he inquired.

She folded her hands in front of her and looked out of the window. “Yes. I thought that they had found out what you are, or that you came here with me, and had captured you.”

“And I was under the impression that you wanted to be rid of me as soon as possible,” he remarked, swiveling the chair to face her.

“I… would miss you if something unfortunate were to happen to you,” she admitted.

He gave her a small smile. “Fortunately I’m usually adept at taking care of myself.”

While he turned back to the computer for a moment, she walked back over to him. “What happened with the Bajoran officer?” she asked.

“He was more than rude. They really don’t like having the orphans in, or even near the town. Their best option is to get the communications grid up and running,” Dukat replied.

“While you do that, I will see if they need further help packing,” Winn stated, leaving the room.

He spent the rest of the day working on the computer console while she assisted Deela and the other carers with packing. Later after dinner, Winn and Dukat decided to take a walk through the gardens. “I’ve decided to resign as kai in order to help the children. You were right. They need someone who can organize funding, opportunities for them to learn trades, and an improved curriculum. The Occupation was wrong, but these children should not be punished for the crimes of their predecessors. As Bajorans and Cardassians, keeping our distance from each other isn’t enough anymore. We need to start striving for real peace,” she explained.

He blinked in surprise. “I’m glad to hear it, but what about Bajor?”

“Bajor will get along without me. My arrogance has put these children in danger. The time has come to do the right thing, because it’s the right thing to do,” she responded.

“You’ve changed,” he assessed.

She smiled. “For the better.” Then she stopped to face him. “This is going to be a rather extensive undertaking. I would like you to help me. I think it’s fitting for a Bajoran and a Cardassian to work together on this project.”

To say that he was dumbfounded would have been an understatement. Though his face did no show it, he was mortified. A few days ago, she would have wanted to get away from him as quickly as possible. Now she was asking him to stay and help her in her endeavor. “I was planning on finding a way to help the children anyway. However, before you decide if you really want me working with you, I need you to know the whole truth about who I am.”

“You’re a Cardassian who was a soldier, and the Prefect of Bajor. What else is there to know? You have done some vile things, but I think both of us can find something better in this project,” she mentioned.

He took her hands in his. “I’m afraid it’s worse than all that, much worse.”

She glanced away in thought for a moment, then faced him again. “I could pardon you.”

Her offer was genuine, he could see it in her eyes. “You might not want to make that offer after what I’m about to say.”

“I think you’re wrong,” she countered.

He faced her and brushed her cheek with his hand. “You almost guessed it before, when you realized that I had to be the Prefect of Bajor. Only a few Cardassians have ever been the Prefect of Bajor.”

Had she known and been in denial all this time? Even if she did know, she had seen him trying to follow the will of the Prophets. She had heard his sincerity in wanting to do the right thing. She had seen his genuine regret over his mistakes, and the grief in his eyes for his daughter. She had watched how kind he was with children. “Tell me who you are.”

He stepped away from her and sighed heavily. “My given name really is Gosrin, but my full name is Gosrin Dukat. I’m Gul Dukat.”

She watched as he turned his back to her and faced the garden, unwilling to see her reaction. The meaning of who he was began to sink in as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. He was the arrogant, vile, smooth-talking, ruthless, manipulating vulture who had haunted her people. She mentally kicked herself for not recognizing him by his distinctive voice alone. However, her memory of what he had been was such a sharp contrast to what she had seen in the past few days. The sworn enemy of Bajor had somehow become her friend. It was almost unfathomable. And yet it seemed fitting that an enemy of her people would make her take a closer look at herself.

Walking ahead of him, she looked over her shoulder and motioned for him to continue strolling through the garden with her as she spoke. “I have learned a few things on this trip of ours. Power and chasing after it destroy any hope of good intentions that people have. The lure of adulation is hard to resist, and harder still to detect. You want to do something good, but the lure of getting acknowledgment for doing something good starts to outweigh what you intended,” Winn began, turning to face Dukat as he kept pace with her.

She continued. “It’s ironic that it’s taken an enemy of my people for me to finally see how much trouble my own ego has gotten me into. When I was a vedek, I wanted to help Bajor, to restore Bajor after the Occupation, but I thought that I could only do that from a position of power. I wanted to do something good, but I wanted all the credit for it too.”

“Ambition gets in the way. You think that it’s your right to do as you please because you’re right, and everyone else is wrong,” Dukat added.

Winn nodded. “My selfishness and arrogance caused me to think that I was entitled to run things because I alone had the right ideas. I even thought that I was entitled to hear from the Prophets. No wonder they didn’t want to talk to me. I was blinded by ambition. Kira said as much when I spoke with her before returning to Bajor with you. I need to step down as kai, not just to help the children, but because of my own ambition.”

“It sounds as though you’ve found your path,” he commented.

“The Prophets asked me what I seek. I wanted understanding. Now that I do understand, I seek forgiveness from them for my actions, but also peace, for myself, for Bajor, and for all of us. It’s time that we let hatred go and start moving toward true peace,” she elaborated.

“They had another question, didn’t they?” he reminded, to which she nodded. “What do you wish to become?”

“Someone who strives for peace and wants to teach others to do the same, someone who wants to help the younger generations with no rewards or accolades in sight,” she explained with a genuine smile.

His smiled at her. “That sounds like a very good idea.”

She returned the smile. “The Bajor that you and I wanted starts with peace and teaching the younger generations to be better.”

He looked ahead thoughtfully for a while as they continued walking. They could hear the evening orchestra of insects as the sky began to darken into a red-purple. “What will you do with me, now that you know that I’m Gul Dukat? Will you turn me over to your government then to face a trial?”

What did she intend to do with him? If he had told her immediately that he was Gul Dukat, she might have turned him over to her government. What would be gained from that, retribution? Would it really make anything better? Would it solve anything for the orphans, or for her? No. He had changed, and seeing the change in him had changed her.

With her right hand, she reached for his left and they stopped walking. “I’m pardoning you. That means you will be free to go where you wish, but,” she paused and he noticed that she was slightly nervous as she continued, “I would prefer if you stayed and helped me. Along with helping to organize this project, I think there are many things that you could help teach them.”

He had told the Prophets that he wanted to be a better man. He had been planning to stay anyway, to help the children where he had failed before. And then there was the woman herself. She was not a fling, not a one-time lover, not a mistress. She was his equal, and someone whom he had genuinely grown to care for. He loved her. There was no backing away from it. He loved her and he wanted to stay with her. But did she love him? Could she love him? Was it only friendship, or something much more?

“Nothing would make me happier than to stay with the children, whether they are here or on the space station, and help you,” he expressed.

“I’m glad to hear it,” she responded.

They decided that it was time to head back to the main building. She watched him as he resumed his work with the computer and the communications grid.

“I’ve almost got it. I think it just needs more power,” Dukat remarked, adjusting some of the wires. When the computer screen came up, he looked at the connectivity. “What we’ve got will actually reach the capital, but I can’t get the space station yet.”

Winn neared the computer. “Actually if you can access the network at the capital, I can use my codes to access the forms to pardon you and then submit them.”

He moved aside and she took a seat in front of the computer. After a while she had accomplished setting up his pardon. “Can you access Deep Space 9 from what you were working in?” Dukat inquired.

She moved back and stood. “I might if I was better at computer systems, but not at the moment.”

Sighing, he faced her. “It’s just as well. I think what the system needs is more power to boost the signal.”

“Things might look more manageable in the morning,” she commented.

“You’re probably right,” he said as he took one of her hands in his and kissed it. “Goodnight, Adami.”

She smiled warmly and briefly touched his face with her other hand. “Goodnight, Dukat,” she said before both retired to their separate rooms for the night.


	10. Discoveries

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” Dr. Pica Roz is mine.

Chapter 10: Discoveries

Winn woke up sneezing again. This time her window was closed. _Enough of this. When I find the plant that is causing this, I’m taking a shovel to it_ , she thought to herself. Wanting to treat her allergies as soon as possible, she put on the maroon dress and pulled her hair back into a ponytail at the base of her neck and decided that seeing the doctor would be her first task of the morning.

She followed the path that Deela had shown her the previous day. It was much like the footpaths she and Dukat had been taking, tall grass and trees on the sides, small flowered bushes mixed in. The path stopped at a town with buildings that were a mixture of old and new. Some were the simple wooden buildings with wooden shingles, while others had a more modern, square appearance. She looked for the doctor’s sign and easily found it.

Pausing at the door, she tried the knob to see if it was locked. Given the early hour, she did not want to disturb the doctor, since her situation was not an emergency. The door creaked open and Winn found a waiting area with chairs and a desk with a computer of sorts. However, beyond the waiting area was what looked like a blending of a greenhouse and a laboratory, with glass vials and burners, but also several plants, both potted and dried, the dried ones hanging up.

“Hello?” Winn called.

A slender woman with a friendly smile stood up from where she had been bent over a few plants. Her black hair was pinned up in several interlocking braids. “I’m Dr. Pica Roz. How may I help you?”

Winn walked closer to her. “I apologize if this is a bit early.”

Pica shrugged. “It’s no trouble. People without appointments usually arrive in about an hour. If my door is open, anyone is welcome.”

Winn smiled. “Thank you. I’ve been sneezing in the mornings for the past few days. I haven’t been to this area much and I thought that perhaps I could be allergic to a plant that only blooms in the morning.”

The doctor raised a thoughtful eyebrow. “We don’t have any plants like that here. Why don’t you follow me over here and have a seat?” she offered.

Winn did as the doctor requested and Pica led her past the plants, to a room with an examination table, a chair, and a couch. The doctor seated Winn on the couch. “When did the sneezing start?”

“The morning before yesterday,” Winn replied.

Pica took a tool with a lighted cone on one end and examined Winn’s nose. Then she gently pressed Winn’s sinuses and looked at her eyes. “Interesting. Your eyes are not puffy and your sinuses are not blocked. You don’t show the symptoms of having an allergy.”

Winn’s brow furrowed. “But something must be wrong. Perhaps I’ve caught a cold. When I sneeze, I sneeze several times in a-” as if on cue, Winn began sneezing.

“And does this happen only in the mornings?” Pica questioned.

“Yes,” Winn answered, sneezing again.

Pica stood and headed over to a cabinet. She opened a drawer and retrieved what appeared to be a mask that could fit over the nose and mouth attached to a box. “Try this. If it works, it means that your problem is not from allergies.”

“Wait, I have nothing to pay you with, for the visit or the treatment,” Winn mentioned between sneezes.

“It’s alright. I like to help people. I would feel badly if you left here, still sneezing. It would look bad for business too,” Pica explained with a smirk.

Winn accepted the device and breathed into it for a few minutes. The sneezing stopped and Winn handed the device back to Pica. “Thank you. That feels much better. What does it mean thought if I don’t have allergies?”

The doctor sat down next to Winn and folded her hands in front of her. “It means that you are pregnant. Bajoran women sneeze slightly before or not long after the second month of their pregnancy has begun.”

Winn blinked at the doctor in surprise. “Are you absolutely certain of this?”

“There is one more thing that we could try,” Pica remarked.

The doctor moved over to some of the vials. She found an empty one and then proceeded to pour a bluish liquid into it, along with some ground petals from a few different flowers, and ground stems from a few herbs. She stirred the mixture with a small glass stick and then handed it to Winn. “Come over to the sink. I’ve found that mixing the old ways with some of the more modern ways is helpful in medicine. You don’t just throw away the past. You learn from it. Anyway, bring that to your mouth, but don’t drink it. It needs to sit in your mouth for a moment so that your taste buds will notice it. Either it will taste absolutely horrid, or it will taste like almost nothing.”

Winn did as the doctor suggested. After a moment, the mixture tasted as if something had gone rancid and had been poured onto something that had died. She quickly spit it out into the sink. “You wouldn’t happen to have anything to get rid of that tastes, would you? I really hope that wasn’t some sort of medical prank. ‘Horrid’ is an understatement.”

The doctor handed her a cup of mouthwash. “Sorry about that, but it’s actually the most accurate way to answer the question, short of scanning you. The herbs in the mixture react with certain hormones and cause either no taste or a very bad one.”

After Winn used the mouthwash, she looked back to Pica. “So? What does it mean?”

“It means that you are, indeed, pregnant,” Pica told her plainly.

Winn wanted to process the news privately. She stood and thanked he doctor, saying that she was returning to where she was staying. As soon as she had left the building, she ducked into an alley where she was unseen. Slowly she placed a hand on her abdomen. She simply had not been paying attention. Due to all the walking over the past few days, she had not noticed much of a weight gain. Was it really true?

Then she remembered the girl from her vision, the half-Cardassian, half-Bajoran girl with hazel-blue eyes. _I guess that’s one mystery solved. I was looking at my daughter. My daughter. My daughter, and Gosrin Dukat’s daughter. This is going to be an interesting conversation_ , she reasoned to herself. _Is this what peace between our worlds looks like? This could be another chance for him._

She began walking back, not noticing the soft footsteps behind her. Suddenly, someone’s left arm wrapped around her waist. She felt a hypospray on the right side of her neck and the world went black.

Dukat had not seen Winn all morning. She had not been at breakfast, nor was she visiting with the children or walking the grounds. He found Deela in the main building. “Have you seen the kai this morning?” he asked.

Deela shook her head. “No, but she was asking about seeing someone about allergies the day before yesterday. I told her about the path to town that I showed you. She probably went to find the doctor. She hasn’t returned yet?”

Trying to maintain a sense of calm, he sighed through gritted teeth. “No. I haven’t seen her this morning. Let me see if I understand this correctly; you let a woman who has a target on her back leave by herself?” he questioned.

The color drained from Deela’s face. “Oh,” was all she could say.

“Please send someone to check the path and the town. I’ve got to contact Deep Space 9. If only I had more power…” he trailed off as he looked from the main computer to the one with the database. “Wait, they use a similar form of power cell.”

He checked the power cells of the database computer and found them to be nearly full due to the lack of use the computer was receiving. The other computer’s power cells were greatly depleted. Dukat decided to switch the power cells. Suddenly the computer’s power had tripled. After more tinkering, he established a link with the space station.

Colonel Kira Nerys had just begun her shift. She would be leaving to help the Cardassian resistance within the next day. Captain Benjamin Sisko was reviewing the Dominion’s latest activities on an electronic pad. Then they heard a beeping sound. “Captain, there’s a transmission coming from Bajor. It looks like it originated from the Tozhat Resettlement Center,” she relayed.

He raised an eyebrow. “No one’s heard from them in years. Put it through,” he requested.

A thin middle-aged Bajoran with streaks of gray hair came into view. “Thank goodness I finally got through,” the man said. “I don’t know how much longer I’m going to have the power to do this, but we have an emergency situation.”

“Proceed,” Sisko remarked. The voice sounded familiar to him.

“There are two things. First of all, the Circle is back and we have reason to believe they will target the resettlement center here. Would it be possible for you to beam the children to the station for a while?” Dukat requested.

Chief O’Brien raised an eyebrow and looked back to the captain. “It’s possible to do what he’s asking, sir. I’ll just need to recalibrate a few things.”

“That’s good, Chief. Go ahead,” Sisko responded. He looked back to the screen. “I suppose we can do that. You said that there were two things?”

“Yes. The Circle has kidnapped Kai Winn. We need to go after them and get her back as soon as possible,” he explained.

Kira suddenly hit the mute button and turned toward the captain. “Sir, I know that voice. It’s Gul Dukat!”

Sisko had thought that the voice sounded familiar. “Computer, run voice recognition on the last conversation. Who is the man on the screen?”

The computer voice told him that “Voice identified as Gul Dukat.”

Kira unmuted the transmission. “Alright, Dukat. We know it’s you. What do you really want?” she probed.

“We don’t have time for this,” Dukat argued.

Sisko glared at the viewscreen. “I think you do. Why are you on Bajor and masquerading as a Bajoran?”

“And why are you concerned with the kai? What kind of scheme are you playing at this time?” Kira demanded.

Dukat put his hands up in defense. “It’s nothing nefarious this time. The Prophets told us to help the war orphans.”

Kira scoffed. “You’re just trying to clean up your last mess from the Occupation.”

He sighed heavily and faced them with determination. “I think you are missing the point. The kai has been kidnapped, by a man who wants revenge. Jaro wants her for something. We have to get her back. I can’t rescue her alone. I don’t have the resources. Are you going to help me beam up the orphans and rescue the kai, or not?”

“Why should we believe you? How do we know it’s not some sort of trap?” Sisko questioned.

Dukat ran a hand through his hair in frustration. _Why are they being so difficult? We don’t have time for this_ , he thought to himself. An expression of worry that Sisko and Kira had rarely seen on Dukat’s face appeared. “Because I have reason to believe that once he’s done with her, he’ll kill her, and I don’t think you want her death on your heads.”

“What do you suggest then?” Sisko inquired.

Dukat noticed Deela by the door. She told him that they had checked the path and had not been able to locate the kai. He nodded and turned his attention back to the screen. “The transmission isn’t going to last much longer. I need you to beam me, and the children, aboard the station.”

As if on cue, the screen began to look fuzzy. “We’re probably going to regret his, but if he is telling the truth, then we should beam him to the station,” Sisko suggested.

“Bloody Cardi. I think this is a terrible idea,” O’Brien remarked as he activated the transporter.

Within minutes, Dukat was beamed aboard the station. He found himself in OPS, receiving a death glare from a very angry Kira and a massively irritated glare from Sisko. “Are the children aboard the station?” he asked.

Kira hit a few buttons on the console. “We beamed them to the Promenade, along with any adult signatures we picked up, so that they would be looked after,” she explained. Then she hit another button and said, “Kira to Promenade Security, the children who were just beamed there are to be fed and see if you can find temporary quarters for groups of them to stay in. They have carers with them who can help.”

“Yes, Colonel,” was the response she received.

“Now, what is going on?” Sisko demanded.

“You should talk to Deela. She’ll corroborate what I’ve told you,” Dukat insisted.

“Why do you think that the Circle has the kai?” Sisko questioned.

“She went out from the resettlement center early this morning and never came back,” Dukat answered.

Kira’s brow furrowed. “How do you know that the kai didn’t just go for a walk? Wait – how do _you_ know the kai?”

Dukat was saved from answering when the console beeped, indicating another transmission. “Sir, it’s from the capital.”

“Put it through, colonel,” Sisko stated.

First Minister Shakaar’s face appeared on the viewscreen. “I’m sorry to come to you with this, but we have a problem,” he began.

“Go ahead,” Sisko encouraged.

“A few days ago, the magisterial estate was bombed. The Circle claimed credit for it. We thought that the kai was dead because remains had been found, but we wanted to confirm the identity before too much was said to the Bajoran people. The remains have been identified as that of her assistant, Solbor. We just received a transmission from the Circle. They want us to get all the alien influences off our planet within the next twenty-six hours, or they’ll destroy them and kill the kai. I know you don’t like Winn much more than I do, but we have to stop this.”

“That’s why we had to get the orphans from the resettlement center off the planet,” Dukat mentioned.

Sisko sighed heavily. “It seems that you were telling the truth.” Then he turned back to Shakaar. “Minister, you have our full cooperation. We don’t know where to begin searching for her though.”

Kira thought for a moment. “Shakaar, what about the caves the circle was using. Was anything ever done about them?”

Shakaar paused in thought. “You know, I don’t think so. No guards were posted. Nothing was closed off. It’s as good a place as any to start.”

“Right. That’s where we’ll be,” Sisko decided.

After the transmission with Shakaar ended, Sisko, Kira, Dr. Julian Bashir, and some Bajoran security officers met in front of an airlock to a shuttlecraft, along with Dukat. “Why aren’t we using the _Defiant_?” he inquired.

“She was destroyed during a battle with the Dominion,” Kira told him, irritation in her voice.

“My condolences. She was a fine ship,” Dukat remarked.

“I’m surprised you haven’t asked about how Cardassia is doing,” Sisko commented.

“I’ve had other things on my mind,” Dukat said simply. “So how is Cardassia?”

Kira smirked. “They’ll be trying to resist the Dominion, and they’ll be doing it with the help of a former Bajoran rebel.”

“I see you haven’t lost your flair for irony, Major,” Dukat responded.

“It’s ‘Colonel,’” she spat.

On the shuttle ride to Bajor, at least two of the security personnel had their weapons pointed at Dukat. “Is this really necessary?” he asked.

Kira rolled her eyes. “It’s either this, or you can ride outside the shuttle.”

“I’ll take my chances inside,” he commented.

Dukat kept pensively watching the viewscreen from where he sat. Kira looked back at him. “I’m going to ask you again, how do you know the kai?” she probed.

He sighed and rested his hands on his knees. “I don’t think that’s relevant to this mission.”

Kira kept her weapon pointed at him. “Oh, I think it’s very relevant, because it might tell me why I shouldn’t just put you in front of a Bajoran firing squad after we rescue her.

He turned his attention away from the viewscreen to face her. “I became involved with the Pah-wraiths. There was-”

“I know about the cult,” Kira interrupted.

“This was after the cult. I became involved for real. They wanted me to use the kai in order for them to be released in the fire caves. For that, we needed a certain book,” he explained further.

Kira became livid. “The Kosst Amojan. That’s a forbidden text!”

“When we started to study the book, we found the pages to be blank and realized how foolish we had been. We sought the Prophets’ forgiveness and they spoke to both of us. They warned us about the Circle and that the war orphans needed our help,” he relayed.

Kira processed what he had told her, letting his explanation sink in. “What I can’t figure out is why Winn would trust you in the first place. You see, I know the kai, and I know she hates Cardassians. And she really hates you.”

“People can change, Colonel,” he said simply.

“Maybe, but I can’t wait to hear her side of the story,” Kira remarked, crossing her arms in front of her. “If it doesn’t match yours, I’ll shoot you myself.”

As the shuttle neared the surface, Sisko stated, “We can’t transport. The caves are too dense. We’ll have to land.”

They found the caves and carefully landed the shuttlecraft near them. Then, most of the security guards, Sisko, Kira, and Dukat entered the cave.


	11. The Price of Arrogance

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” Bato Ravi, Loro Van, Sito Joli, and Ty Aran are mine.

Chapter 11: The Price of Arrogrance

Winn woke on a cot in a cave lit by wall lanterns. _No surprises here. They met in the caves the first time_ , she thought to herself. She was in some sort of partial cave that was only a few feet deep. When she stood and tried to leave, a force field appeared. A stocky brown-haired Bajoran man with a phase rifle and a tray of meat and vegetables entered her field of vision.

“Our boss thinks that you ought to eat. Here,” he said, passing the tray through the barrier.

She accepted it with a nod. “Thank you. Are you certain that none of it is poison?”

“He has something he wants to ask you. I don’t think he would want to poison you yet,” the man replied.

“Is your boss Jaro Essa?” she questioned as she ate.

The man blinked in surprise. “Yes.”

“Do you know who I am?” she inquired.

“He said you were someone he used to know,” the man responded.

She stepped close to the barrier. “What is your name?”

“Bato Ravi,” he answered.

“I am Kai Winn. You and your associates have kidnapped the kai of Bajor. You need to release me. This is wrong, Bato,” she told him.

Bato scoffed. “Jaro said not to listen to you because you’re good at convincing people to do what you want. Jaro wants to talk to you in while.”

She folded her hands in front of her. “Do you have children, Bato?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Yes. I have three.”

“Do you really want them to grow up in a world where they have to be afraid of anything different? The universe is so much bigger than one planet. Don’t they deserve the chance to know the species with whom they share the universe?” she pressed.

“They only need to know enough to stay away from what is not Bajoran,” he stated.

“But that’s not good enough anymore,” she attempted to argue. He left before she could say anything further.

Winn sighed heavily, sitting down on the cot. The food was at least sufficient, if not bland. She glanced around the cave again, trying to find some sort of way out, or a way to disarm the force field. _Nothing. There is nothing here to help me. I’m just going to have to sit here and await my fate_ , she thought with annoyance. She gently rested a hand on her abdomen. “I’m sorry, little one. This wasn’t part of the plan,” she whispered to her unborn child.

A few hours later, Bato returned. He tapped a pad on the wall and the force field shut off. “Jaro will see you now,” Bato said as he grabbed her arm and dragged her into another cave. He tied her wrists and ankles to a chair and then left the area.

Winn tried unsuccessfully to wiggle out of the ropes that bound her wrists. Then Jaro Essa entered the cave. He was grayer than she remembered, sickly thin, and a bit hunched over. Prison had not gone well for him. “Hello, Essa,” she said blandly.

“Adami, what a surprise. Looks like you became kai without my help,” he stated sardonically.

“Why are you doing this? Why bring back the Circle? Why try to kill me? Why attack orphans? They are children, innocent children!” she argued.

He scoffed. “Bombing the magisterial estate was revenge. Somehow you eluded it. As for those disgusting creatures, I don’t know how you found out that I had plans for them, but I’ve given your government twenty-six hours to do something useful. They may start out as children, but they grow up to be killing machines! It’s in their blood!”

“You’re wrong, Essa! They are innocent, and know almost nothing of their Cardassian heritage. You used to be a decent man,” she tried to reason with him.

Jaro fiddled with a phaser that he kept pointing at her. “I was supposed to be the minister. You were going to help me. Instead, you put me in prison. Do you know how prisoners treat people they perceive to be collaborators? I could show you the knife wounds, the bones that didn’t heal right after they were brutally broken.”

“Though I am sorry that they treated you so badly, you were getting weapons from the Cardassians,” she explained.

He fired the phaser behind her, startling her. “You should have those Cardassian brats in prison and those that run the resettlement center, not me.”

“The end did not justify the means for what you wanted. Becoming the very thing you are trying to get rid of only makes you a hypocrite,” she tried to explain.

He scoffed and shook his head at her. “You are one to talk. I’ve kept up with your activities. I know about the treaty you have with the Dominion.”

“It was the only way to keep Bajor out of the war. We don’t have the capabilities to fight a war on that level,” she countered.

“You would hand Bajor over to the enemy to save your position, wouldn’t you? And you call me a hypocrite,” he threw back.

“Essa, what do you want? To kill me?” she questioned.

“No. At least not just yet,” he paused and walked over to her. “I might even let you go, if you do one favor for me.”

She raised an eyebrow. Her hands were almost free. “I’m listening.”

“The kai of Bajor can pardon one person during his or her time as kai. Pardon me. Let me go back to society,” Jaro pleaded.

_Of all the things to ask for. Perhaps I can keep him talking_ , she thought to herself. “What would you do with that kind of freedom? Would you go back to promoting your xenophobic ideas and cause all sorts of chaos for Bajor in foreign relations? Would you throw Bajor into a war with the Dominion?” she shot back.

“No. I was and I am only trying to protect Bajoran interests,” he told her.

She sighed and faced him. _This is the price of my arrogance. This will likely be my death sentence, and my child’s. Gosrin, wherever you are, I forgive you for what you have done. I hope that you can forgive me_. “I cannot do what you ask,” she said quietly, her voice more calm than she felt.

His brow furrowed. “You would rather die than pardon me?”

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes for a second. _If only I could get my hands free_. “I can’t pardon you because I have already pardoned someone else.”

“Who? I demand to know who!” he cried, rage showing on his face.

“Whom I choose to pardon is none of your business,” she stated defiantly.

He glared viciously at her. “You’re lying!”

She shook her head. “It went into official records yesterday.”

“Who did you pardon?” he demanded again. Then he held the phaser to her head. “Tell me who you pardoned, or I’ll shoot you right now.”

She closed her eyes, expecting to hear the airy whirring sound of the phaser. Instead, she heard the voice of her freedom.

“It was me,” a familiar voice said as a man that Jaro did not recognize entered the cavern. He held a plasma rifle and was walking toward Winn. Relief washed over her as she let go of a breath she had been holding and watched him.

“Who are you?” Jaro questioned, turning his gaze from Winn to the intruder.

“As she said, who I am is none of your business,” Dukat retorted.

Winn had freed her hands as they had been talking. Suddenly she grabbed Jaro’s phaser before he realized what had happened. His eyes widened in shock as he saw the phaser aimed at him. “I think it’s time to end this conversation, don’t you, Essa?” she said.

Jaro turned and ran through another tunnel. Dukat untied Winn’s feet and she stood. Then he wrapped his arms around her and held her closely for a moment. She relaxed into his embrace and hugged him back, relishing the security she felt. Slowly he pulled back and eyed her with concern. “Are you alright?”

She nodded. “For the most part. So you were able to talk to Deep Space 9 after all,” she observed.

“Yes. There are some things that still need to be settled, but they did agree to help me in order to rescue you. Come. There is a shuttle waiting for us,” he explained as he offered his arm to her. She took it and they walked toward one of the tunnels. They could hear weapons firing in other parts of the caverns.

“How did you find me without being detected?

“Getting in was easy. Getting out probably won’t be. We sneaked in here and quietly knocked out some of the guards without having to use the phase rifles. Fortunately while Jaro may have had the capability to bomb the magisterial estate, he doesn’t have many followers in the caves,” Dukat explained.

“Unfortunately you’ve lost the element of surprise,” Winn remarked.

“I’ve fought my way out of worse places,” Dukat added.

They rounded a corner and came face to face with Bato. Dukat lifted the rifle to aim it at him. Bato pointed a phaser at Winn. “She’s not going anywhere. If I get shot, so does she,” he told Dukat.

“What do you hope to gain by this? With Bajoran security guards and Starfleet officers in the tunnels, how do you intend to escape?” Dukat probed.

“I’ll take her with me,” Bato replied.

They were so close to escaping. Winn decided that persuasion still might be possible. “What happens after that? What do you want?”

Bato stared at her in confusion, as if she was the first person to actually ask him that question. “I want a free Bajor. No Cardassians, no Federation, just Bajorans.”

“And how exactly is kidnapping me going to help to achieve that? Bato, the only way any of us will ever find peace is if we learn to work together and mutually respect each other. I’m not asking you to forget the past. I am asking you, on behalf of your children, to be respectful of other cultures instead of mistreating them,” Winn persisted. “Your children should not grow up despising the Cardassian children.”

Her words seemed to have made an impact as Bato sighed and lowered his phaser. Kira and a few security guards rounded the corner and arrested him along with the others. Sisko had found Jaro and arrested him. It was decided that the security guards would wait for the government to send civil police officers and then the security guards would leave on a shuttle borrowed from the government.

Before leaving the security guards, Sisko had one more matter to discuss with them. “I know that some of you are aware of our extra guest. This is one of the rare times that I’m asking this of you. I am ordering you not to tell anyone about him. Starfleet will investigate him. Then, if it is applicable, he will be turned over to the Bajoran government. Is this clear to all of you?”

There was a collective “Yes, sir.”

As Sisko left them, a young blonde security guard turned to the others. “Is he serious? Does he really expect us not to tell anyone who we’ve got?”

The guard next to her with curly brown hair sighed. “Sito, he just ordered us to keep quiet about it. He’ll hand Dukat over to us later.”

Sito Joli huffed and crossed her arms. “Loro he’s not even Bajoran! He can’t possibly-”

“I heard that he lost his first wife in a conflict with the Borg. He understands in his own way,” Loro Van defended.

Sito’s brow furrowed. “If he understood, he would have shot Dukat already! Only a Bajoran can truly-”

“Enough of this! It doesn’t matter if he is Bajoran or not. You were given orders and are expected to follow them. He’s in command of the station, and he’s the Emissary!” A guard with light-brown hair graying at the temples reprimanded. Ty Aran was in no mood for insubordinate younger officers. He had missed his morning coffee to be the rescue mission.

“But Ty, the Cardassians killed-” Sito tried again to protest.

“One more remark from you and you’re off my team. Do I make myself clear?” Ty stated.

Sighing, Sito nodded reluctantly. “Yes, sir.” She would just have to be more patient.

Winn, Dukat, Sisko, and Kira left the caverns and boarded the shuttle. Upon their return to the spacecraft, Dukat had his arm around her shoulders, holding her protectively. Winn noticed Kira glaring at him spoke first. “Are the orphans safe?”

“Yes. We managed to transport them to Deep Space 9,” Kira answered. “Now that you’re safe as well, did you know that the man you are standing next to is Gul Dukat?”

Winn looked between Kira, Sisko, and Dukat. “Yes,” she answered.

Sisko picked up the next question. “Kai Winn, with all due respect, what the hell is Dukat doing with you, masquerading as a Bajoran?”

“And can he actually be trusted to tell the truth? He told us some wild story about the Pah-wraiths, blank pages in a forbidden book, wanting to follow the will of the Prophets, and saving the war orphans. What’s really going on?” Kira questioned.

Winn sighed and closed her eyes for a moment. The adrenaline of the escape was wearing off. The room was growing fuzzy and the voices were beginning to blur. Dukat caught her by the arm and looked her in the eyes. “Adami, are you alright?” he asked again.

Kira’s face was livid as she continued glaring icily at Dukat. “You two are on a first-name basis?”

Winn took a deep breath, drawing one last bit of strength. She squeezed Dukat’s arm reassuringly and then faced the others as she spoke. “Thank you everyone for rescuing me. Would one of you please notify Bajor that I am alive and will be spending some time on Deep Space 9 to recuperate? Emissary, with all due respect, the last several days have been very exhausting. I have walked at least thirty-five miles, been shot at, and kidnapped. I will answer your questions when we reach Deep Space 9. At the moment, I need to rest.”

Any further arguments that Sisko was formulating dissipated. “You’re right. We can discuss matters back at the station. Dr. Bashir can help you find a place to rest,” he acknowledged.

“And I’ll let Shakaar know that you’re safe,” Kira mentioned.

Winn looked back to Dukat and mouthed “Later” as Bashir ushered her toward a pull-down bed at the back of the shuttle. Dukat started to move toward them, but Kira caught him, still pointing her rifle at him. “Whatever you have to say to her can wait.”

He sighed. “You’re right, Colonel. Just don’t shoot me until you talk to her yourself.”

As Winn sat down on the bed, Bashir pulled out his tricorder. She moved back slightly. “I’m just verifying that you’re in good health and that the Circle hasn’t harmed you.”

She put a hand on top of his tricorder. “They did not harm me. You don’t need to scan me.”

His brow furrowed. “But Kai Winn, I’m a doctor. It’s my job to-”

“I’m fine. It’s nothing that a good night’s sleep and a cup of tea won’t cure,” Winn insisted. “If you are that concerned, I’ll submit to a scan when we return to the station.”

Reluctantly Bashir nodded. “I suppose if you’re not in pain, a little longer won’t hurt.”


	12. The Fallout

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.”

Chapter 12: The Fallout

Winn slept until the shuttle docked. Dukat ignored Kira’s glare and walked over to Winn. She felt a hand on her arm. “Adami, it’s time to wake up.”

Blinking, she saw him and slowly sat up, placing her arm on top of his. “Gosrin, who’s after us this time?”

He smiled and kissed her hand. “No one. We’ve reached the station.”

“Good,” she responded as she stood.

Dukat offered her his arm as they left the shuttle. As the door to the space station rolled back, they were met by Chief Constable Odo, whom Sisko had notified while the shuttle was en route to Deep Space 9. “If it isn’t Gul Dukat. I could arrest you for disguising yourself as a Bajoran, killing Jadzia Dax, seizing the station, or just being your usual vile self. I think I’ll settle for arresting you for tricking the kai of Bajor into whatever twisted plot you’ve got going.”

Two Starfleet security guards grabbed Dukat by the arms. He tried to shake them off. “That is unnecessary. I haven’t forgotten the location of the brig.”

Winn stepped in immediately. “Stop! You’re wrong. He hasn’t tricked me.”

“He’s still under arrest,” Odo stated.

Winn faced Kira. “Everything he told you is true, about the Pah-wraiths, about speaking to the Prophets, and the war orphans. It’s all true. Let him go. He means you no harm.”

“I don’t care what he intends to do this time. He’s got a long list of crimes that he’ll be answering for,” Sisko told her.

Bashir tried to lead Winn away. “Why don’t you come with me to sickbay and I can properly assess your medical needs?”

She waved him off, locking her gaze with Dukat. “You can’t do this. I’ve pardoned him.”

“I highly doubt that the Bajoran government will support that, and this is still my station. I’m arresting him so that I can assess how big a threat he is,” Sisko explained.

She had thought naively that everything would be fine when they reached Deep Space 9. Now as they were arresting Dukat, it felt as though they were taking away the one person who had been her anchor. Winn reached out to grab Dukat’s hand. “One minute, please,” she requested.

Odo and the guards looked over to Sisko. “One minute,” he agreed.

The guards released Dukat and he and Winn moved off to the side of the hall, attempting to be as out of earshot as possible. “I’m sorry that they won’t listen,” she whispered, still holding his right hand with her left.

He gently grasped her right arm with his left and stroked it with his thumb. Since joining her on Bajor, he had learned to read her well. It was only obvious to him how upset she was. “We’re on their station. We have to play by their rules for now,” he said quietly.

“I will find a way to free you,” she insisted.

“Don’t let them see your fear. And whatever you do, be careful,” he whispered before the guards pulled him back toward them.

After Odo and the security guards had led Dukat away, Bashir put a hand on her shoulder. “Now will you come with me?”

She shook off his hand and gave him a death glare that sent him stepping backward. “Doctor, I will be there in my own time.” Then she turned to face the others. “As for the rest of you, you are making a mistake.”

Winn dashed off toward the Promenade. Kira looked back at Sisko. “I’ll keep an eye on her, sir.”

He nodded. “Good. I’m going to have a chat with Dukat and get to the bottom of all this.”

“After that, you should give him back his Cardassian skin,” she suggested.

Soon Winn reached the shrine. Someone was using it, but only for a moment. Once she was certain that it was unoccupied, she went in, opened the cabinet with the orb, and kneeled down. “Prophets, we are trying to do your will, trying to help the orphans. Gosrin shown me exactly what I needed to see about myself, but now they’ve arrested him. I don’t know what to do. I can’t do this alone,” she prayed, tears streaming down her face.

She found herself by one of the large windows, on one of the upper levels of the Promenade. An image of Kira appeared. “She has returned. She understands now.”

An image of Bashir spoke. “She knows what she seeks and what she wishes to become.”

Next to her and image of Dukat appeared. He was in civilian clothes, but this time he was his Cardassian self. “She has forgiven him also.”

An image of Sisko appeared. “She has chosen to follow peace.”

The image of Dukat spoke again. “She will not be alone. The Sisko must understand.”

The half-Cardassian, half-Bajoran girl appeared again and walked over to Winn. “She will be alright. Do not worry. The path is clear. Tell the Sisko that you are walking the path we have set before you.” Then Winn was back in the shrine and the images were gone.

Kira had followed Winn to the shrine, intending to tell her how bad an idea it would be to keep Dukat around, but as she peered in at Winn, she noticed the tears on her face. Waiting for Winn outside of the shrine, Kira decided on a different tactic. Winn emerged, having wiped the tears from her face, and appearing to have composed herself. She blinked in surprise to see Kira.

“Child, if you are going to lecture me, now is-”

“Actually I have a better idea,” Kira interjected. “Would you like to join me for tea?”

Winn smiled at the unexpected offer. “Thank you. I would like that.”

While Winn had been at the shrine, Sisko had gone to the brig to investigating Dukat’s motives. Odo had left Lieutenants Sanchez and Riley to watch the new prisoner. The captain entered the brig. “Has he given you any trouble?” Sisko inquired.

Sanchez shook his head. “No, sir. He’s been very quiet.”

“Good, you two are dismissed for now,” the captain told them. As the two men left, he approached the cell. “Dukat, you have a lot to answer for.”

“You must enjoy seeing me on this side of the cell,” Dukat drawled.

“What are you really doing here, with the kai?” Sisko demanded.

Dukat crossed his arms and leaned against a bulkhead. “I’ve already told you.”

“Kai Winn and I have not always seen eye to eye. Most of the time we get on each other’s nerves, but I will not stand by and let her be hurt by the likes of you,” Sisko told him.

Dukat smirked and eyed him incredulously. “So you’ve become her protective brother. Interesting. Have you found her quarters yet? Have you seen to it that she’s had a good meal after her ordeal?”

The Cardassian had made a good point, but Sisko was not about to concede the discussion to him any time soon. “Right now I’m keeping her safe from you. If you’re just using her for something-”

“You’re wrong. I have no intention of harming her,” Dukat interrupted.

Sisko narrowed his eyes at Dukat. “Then why become Bajoran?”

The other man sighed. “That was the Pah-wraiths’s idea.”

“Don’t think for a minute that we are leaving you Bajoran,” the captain commented.

Dukat smirked again. “Thinking that you would be reasonable was probably too much to hope for. It would be easier to function on this station and make preparations for the war orphans if you did leave me Bajoran.”

“So you really expect me to believe that you’ve decided to do something benevolent and help the war orphans then?” Sisko remarked skeptically.

“Yes. The kai and I have plans to have a school for them and to help them find trades. They should never have been abandoned on Bajor like that,” Dukat expressed.

“It was your fault that they were down there in the first place!” Sisko argued.

“Actually it was my government’s fault,” Dukat corrected.

“What are you getting out of this? Has this all been to convince her to pardon you?” Sisko questioned.

Sitting down on the bench in the cell, Dukat rested his hands on his knees and leaned forward. “You think I’m getting something out of this? The pardon was completely unexpected, I assure you.”

“What is she to you?” Sisko probed.

“Say you are given a mission. Part of the mission requires another person, so you find a way to manipulate the other person into helping you. Then you both realize that the plan you were pursuing is wrong, and both of you seek a different path. While on this path, you see the depth of who the other person really is, what they care about, and you watch them learn what truly matters.” He paused and began pacing as he spoke. “You share stories and laughter with them. You also share trials and pain with them. Suddenly you see her understand what her purpose is. For some unfathomable reason, she understands what you are as well, but instead of being angry, she wants your help to reach goals you couldn’t even imagine six months ago. Every time you see her, it’s like waking up. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for her.”

“You love her,” Sisko said quietly with wonder.

Dukat sat down met Sisko’s gaze. “Without a doubt.”

Kira took Winn to her quarters and replicated two cups of jumja tea and a plate of moba fruit. She offered Winn the couch and took a chair across from it. Kira left the plate of moba fruit on the coffee table and handed Winn a cup of tea.

“I should have planned things better and arranged for a two-room suite,” Winn remarked, taking a sip of her tea.

Taking a sip of her tea, Kira asked, “Is that because you intend to have Dukat stay there as well?”

Winn took a bite of the moba fruit. “Yes. I spoke with the Prophets, Nerys. They want us to take the path that we are now on.”

“Help me understand why he means so much to you,” Kira expressed.

“I know you doubt it, but he has changed,” Winn mentioned.

Kira scoffed. “He’s pulled that stunt before.”

“I’m well aware of who he was, and what he was. Let me tell you about who he is,” she paused and then told Kira in detail about her journey, beginning with the visions from the Prophets. She left the visit with Dr. Pica out of the conversation, only saying that she went to see someone about a possible allergy.

“You’ve had quite a trip in the last few days,” Kira observed.

“And so has he. He helped me to see that I have been arrogant and ambitious, and that my quest for power has only distanced me from the Prophets. Instead of helping the Bajoran people, everything I’ve done has been self-serving. I’ve listened to him talk about family, about his daughter, Ziyal. I’ve watched him tutor children in their studies, and he’s surprisingly good at repairing things. He taught me the importance of doing the right thing because it’s the right thing,” Winn explained.

“I would still be cautious around him if I were you. I’m still having trouble believing that he’s really changed that much. So what are your plans?” Kira inquired.

Winn took another sip of her tea. “We want to start a school for the Cardassian orphans. It would be better to have the school here on the space station, instead of Bajor. Also the children should have a way to learn trades when they get older. They are culturally Bajoran, but they look Cardassian and therefore would never be accepted in either place.”

Kira raised an eyebrow. “You would step down as kai to be a teacher?”

The older woman had to smile at Kira’s incredulous expression. “Yes. It’s time we started doing things to build peace,” Winn answered.

“And you’re sure that Dukat’s the one to help you with this?” Kira probed.

Winn nodded and her eyes reflected certainty. “There is no one else I’d rather have. Difficult as it is to understand, he has become someone I trust implicitly, someone I don’t want to do this without.”

“You really care about him, don’t you?” Kira asked, puzzlement showing in her eyes.

Winn set the tea cup down on the coffee table and folded her hands in her lap. “Yes.”

Kira set her tea cup down next to Winn’s. “I still don’t completely understand, but I’ll see what I can do about finding you quarters.”

“Thank you, child,” Winn responded. “Now I would like to see him.”

Kira hit her combadge. “Kira to Sisko, Kai Winn would like to speak with Dukat.”

“I’m afraid that’s not possible at this time, Colonel. Perhaps in another hour or two,” Sisko told her.

“Alright sir. What about finding quarters for her?” Kira inquired.

“I’ll leave that to you, Colonel,” Sisko stated.

“Alright sir, Kira out,” she ended. She walked over to a computer console. “I’ll see what’s available.”

Winn stood. “In that case, I should probably see your doctor, since I have some time before the Emissary feels like being charitable.”

Kira sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “He is being charitable. You are asking a lot of us here, to trust a man who’s been a pain in our backsides and an overall nightmare to deal with for several years.”

Winn’s brow furrowed. “I’m sorry, child. You’re right. I just want to get things moving in the right direction as soon as possible.” She paused and sighed. “I ought to be more patient.”

“Why are you in such a hurry?” Kira questioned.

Winn faced the window and folded her hands in front of her. “I cannot explain further at this time, but a complication has come up. I should be going.”

Kira walked her to the door. “Will you be alright?”

“Yes, and thank you for the tea,” Winn responded as she left and headed for sickbay.

Winn entered sickbay and noticed that it did not seem to have as many staff members as she remembered. She walked over to Bashir, who was packing up a small medical bag, as if going he were somewhere. He looked up at her, surprised and slightly nervous. “Kai Winn, how may I help you?”

She folded her hands in front of her. “I owe you an apology, doctor, for my earlier rudeness. I was frustrated with the situation and you were at the wrong place, at the wrong time.”

“Thank you,” he acknowledged.

“You wanted to examine me,” she continued.

“I suppose I have a moment,” Bashir said led her over to a biobed and told her to have a seat.

Then as he had tried to do on the shuttlecraft, he brought the tricorder close to scan her again. She placed her hand on top of it and looked him in the eyes. “No one is to know about this,” Winn instructed.

His brow furrowed. “Of course not. Doctor-patient confidentiality means that anything learned or discussed stays between the doctor and the patient.”

“You may proceed then,” she acquiesced.

Soon he understood why she was so insistent that no one else find out about her condition. “You’re pregnant,” he observed.

“That is correct,” she stated.

“And the child is half-Cardassian,” he mentioned, noticing that she did not seem surprised. “But you knew that too, didn’t you?”

She sighed. “I became aware of it when I went to see a doctor for allergies, shortly before I was kidnapped by the Circle. I learned that I was not sneezing because of allergies, and as for the other part, only one person could be the father.”

“I have a treatment for the sneezing, a device you breathe into once a day. You could stop by discreetly in the morning,” Bashir suggested.

Smiling politely, she responded, “Thank you, doctor. That would be acceptable.”

He waited a moment before speaking again. “What will you do? It won’t be long before your condition becomes very apparent.”

What would she do? She would have to tell Dukat eventually, and probably Kira, which would mean that the Emissary would also need to know. “I will figure it out. Was there anything else, doctor?” she asked evasively.

Bashir shook his head. “You are in good health.” She began walking toward the door, but he suddenly stopped her. “I have a very good friend who is a counselor on this station. She has the same rules that I do, regarding doctor-patient confidentiality. Her name is Ezri Dax. If you need someone to talk to…”

Winn smiled politely again. “Thank you, doctor, but I need to sort this myself.”


	13. Without Pretense

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.”

Chapter 13: Without Pretense

Kira met Winn outside of sickbay. “I’ve arranged quarters for you, a two-room suite, like you requested.”

Winn smiled politely. “Thank you.”

“Is everything alright?” Kira asked with concern.

“Your doctor tells me that I’m in good health. There is nothing you need to concern yourself with,” Winn responded politely.

Kira raised an eyebrow at the evasive remark, but said nothing. Soon they were at Winn’s quarters. “I had your bag brought here. The sonic shower works well. I’ll let you know when you can visit him,” Kira relayed.

“Thank you. Tell the Emissary that I need to see Dukat today,” Winn insisted.

“I’ll do what I can,” Kira managed before leaving Winn.

Alone, Winn decided to use the sonic shower and change into the blue dress, recalling that Dukat liked that one. Then she decided that braiding her hair might improve her mood. She made two thin braids near each temple, then wove them back through one braid with the rest of her hair. She was contemplating what to replicate for dinner when the door chimed.

Kira was at the door. “I’ll take you to see him now.” Winn thanked her and the two walked toward the brig. When they reached the brig, Winn noticed that Bashir was just leaving. “He’s not hurt, is he?” she asked the doctor.

“No. He’s fine. He’s himself,” Bashir told her. She eyed the doctor curiously, but decided to enter the room instead of asking him what he was referring to.

They had dropped the force field of the cell. She noticed that at least they had let Dukat have his travel bag, as she spotted it on the floor near him. He stood, hearing her enter. She walked toward the cell, but stopped as her eyes widened in shock, seeing him in Cardassian skin again. Here was the face of her enemy. Here was the test of whether or not she truly cared for him. It had been easier to accept him when he had claimed to be Cardassian while looking Bajoran, but that had been a mask. Yet as she looked at him, it was not Gul Dukat she saw, but her friend, Gosrin. When she looked into his eyes, she saw the same blue eyes that she had seen the day they met. She could also see sadness reflected in them.

His brow furrowed at her reaction. “For all their claims of benevolence, they seem to be lacking in common courtesy. They didn’t tell you that you would be face to face with the enemy,” he said quietly.

Shaking her head she rushed over to him and crossed the threshold. She touched his face and gently felt the ridges. “I’m not going to lie to you. Seeing you like this is not easy. But I don’t see an enemy. The pretenses have just been dropped. I don’t see the man you once were. I see the man who has made me laugh with family stories, the man who can fix almost anything, the man who helps children with their homework, and the man who has become my best friend.”

He pulled her into an embrace and they hugged. “I’m also a man who’s never going to see the outside of this brig as long as we’re on the space station.”

“You leave that to me,” she told him. “I might have a few ideas.”

“Even looking like this, you would still want me out of the brig?” he questioned.

They sat down on the bench in the cell. “I did pardon you, didn’t I? I have no intention of taking that back. No matter how you look, I would still like your help.”

That she was still willing to pardon him was surprising enough. That she was sitting in the cell with him was even more astonishing. “When we talked in the garden, I didn’t ask you why. Why do still want to pardon me?”

“Because I forgive you. I’ve seen pieces of your journey and I am not going to let the past crimes dictate the future. I will need your help with more than the plans for the war orphans. You and I are meant to walk this path together,” she explained.

He could only look at her in amazement. “Thank you,” he managed.

She smirked at him. “You sound surprised.”

“I thought you were the type who didn’t forgive war criminals,” he commented.

“That may have been my opinion at one time, but it is not going to help us move forward. You need to be out of this cell,” she replied.

His stomach growled. “I hope they bring dinner soon.”

“That should not be difficult to fix. I will be back,” she told him before standing exiting the cell.

Sisko and Kira had been watching from a room off to the side. Winn found them and said, “He hasn’t had dinner yet. I’m going to get him something. And don’t try to tell me that part of his punishment is starvation.”

“We were actually going to get him something after you were done speaking with him,” Kira mentioned.

Winn left and returned with a plate of ramufta and two forks. Dukat looked up at her when she entered the cell again. “I haven’t eaten either, so we might as well share dinner,” she explained.

She joined him on the bench again. Then they each took a fork and began to eat. “I haven’t had this in a while,” Dukat remarked.

“The replicators here actually have a fairly good selection of Bajoran food,” Winn mentioned.

“It’s not half bad, coming from the replicator,” Dukat added.

Winn took a bite. “It tastes better when someone cooks it though.”

They ate in silence for a while. As he finished, Dukat asked, “What happens now?”

Winn seemed to sit up straight and he could see the resolve in her eyes. “I am getting you out of this brig somehow. I have a two room suite, so you’ll be staying with me. I need to contact First Minister Shakaar and explain the plans for having the school up here, as well as a trade school. Then I need to resign officially.”

Dukat smirked. “I’m glad one of us has a plan. By the way, that dress really does look good on you, and I like what you’ve done with your hair.”

She smiled at the compliments. “Thank you. I think the maroon dress is cursed. I may give it away after I wash it.”

He thought for a moment. “Hmm, you were wearing it when people were shooting at us, and then you were wearing it when you were kidnapped. You might be right about that,” he said chuckling.

_Should I tell him about the baby? I don’t even know how to begin. Perhaps I’ll wait until he’s out of the brig at least_ , Winn thought to herself. She decided to address another issue. “We need to find a way for you to be on this station without everyone here trying to harm you or bring up charges against you.”

“I still think that they should have left me as a Bajoran,” he stated flatly.

_That would have been a problem when the baby is born_ , she reasoned. “No. Since the real Anjohl Tennan is dead, that would cause other complications. You could wear a robe and gloves.”

He shook his head. “What would I tell people, that I was in some terrible fire? There has to be another way.”

“Could they alter you to look like a different Cardassian?” she inquired.

“It’s not a bad idea…” he trailed off.

“But you still don’t like it,” she finished.

“I suppose the best scenario that I can hope for at this point is to be placed under house arrest,” he deduced.

“We will come up with something eventually,” she said confidently.

She stood to leave the cell, but stopped and faced him. “I know we will find a way to make this work. Both of us are supposed to run the school.”

He stood and walked over to her. “I admire your confidence. In case they don’t let me out tonight, goodnight, Adami,” he said as he kissed her hand.

She touched his face again. He held her hand in place and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened his eyes, he found her only inches from him. He wanted to kiss her, but knowing what he looked like held him back. Instead he kissed her forehead.

Winn let him go reluctantly. She had almost kissed him, but she was still getting used to the drastic shock of seeing him as he really was. “Goodnight, Gosrin,” she said as she left the cell.

She exited the brig and walked over to where Sisko and Kira were standing again as they continued to observe everything. “There are things we need to discuss, Emissary.” It was not a request.

“Let’s continue this in my office,” Sisko suggested.

Winn agreed and the three of them made their way to Sisko’s office. “I’ve pardoned him, therefore, you cannot legally keep him in the brig,” Winn insisted.

“There isn’t a Bajoran in the Alpha Quadrant who would back that up,” Sisko told her bluntly.

“Perhaps not, but I am still the kai. I have not officially resigned yet. You could release him into my custody. He wouldn’t be your problem anymore,” she argued.

“What about the fact that he looks like the Dukat that everyone knows to hate?” Kira mentioned.

“That was your doing, not mine,” Winn pointed out.

“Regardless of whose idea it was, it needed to be done. I will not indulge his games,” Sisko argued.

Winn folded her hands in front of her. “The burden of figuring out what to do with him is mine.”

“I’m not releasing him tonight. We will discuss this tomorrow,” Sisko told her.

“Fine,” she agreed with a sigh, recalling what Dukat had said about playing by their rules for the moment. “But expect me to be the first item on your agenda.”

Winn left them and headed to her quarters. Since she could not help Dukat at present, she decided to help the war orphans. She sat down at the computer console in her quarters and contacted the Bajoran capital. Shakaar’s face appeared on the screen. “Kai Winn, what I surprise this is. I’m glad to see that you seem alright after the ordeal with the Circle.”

“Thank you, Minister. I am well. I will be staying on Deep Space 9 for a while,” Winn mentioned.

“So I’ve been told,” he stated.

“Speaking of the Circle, I have a request. There was a guard, Bato Ravi. He let me go when he didn’t have to. He has three children. Would it be possible to lessen his sentence so that he might return to his family?” she inquired.

“I will ask,” Shakaar said.

“I appreciate that, Minister,” she responded.

He looked away for a moment at some notes and then turned back to her. “Something interesting has come up in the files. Is it true that you pardoned Gul Dukat?”

Winn remained calm. “It’s a long story, but yes.”

“That’s not going to sit well with a lot of Bajorans. Of all the people to pardon, why him?” Shakaar probed.

“It’s a bit complicated to explain, but he is not the man he once was, and I feel that our people need to move on from the horrors of the past. The best way to do that is by working together. I also intend to resign as kai,” she answered.

Shakaar’s eyes widened. “That is news. May I ask why?”

“The Cardassian war orphans need better schooling. I intend to have a school for them on the space station, and also offer opportunities for them to learn various trades. Even though they were raised with Bajoran culture, they are still Cardassian and they will never be accepted on Bajor. They deserve a chance to live and to thrive. We’ve forgotten about them for far too long,” Winn explained.

“You’re resigning as kai to be a teacher? You have changed,” he remarked.

She smiled back. “I should hope so. It’s time to find ways to foster peace between our people.”

“Then I wish you luck. Do you need anything for the school?” Shakaar inquired.

“Actually that is why I’ve contacted you. We need to set up a regular fund for school materials. There have been funds for the Tozhat Resettlement Center, but those alone are insufficient to meet their needs,” she told him.

He nodded. “I’ll see what I can do. I like this idea. I hope it works out.”

“So do I. Good day, Minister,” she stated.

“Good day, Kai Winn,” he finished before ending the transmission.

Before retiring for the evening, she replicated a few other dresses for herself. Tomorrow was going to be a long day. She wanted something clean, and something other than the maroon dress.


	14. Chapter 14: Bargaining

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” Nos Mara and Doro Pella are mine.

Chapter 14: Bargaining

Winn woke up sneezing again. She dressed and headed toward sickbay. Dr. Bashir was arranging some of the medical tools when she walked in. “Ah, Kai Winn. I’m glad you decided to stop by early.” He handed her an electronic pad. “Here is a list of things that you should and shouldn’t be eating.”

“Thank you, doctor. That was considerate of you,” she responded politely.

He brought out the device to help with sneezing. “It was no trouble, really.”

After she had finished the treatment for the day, he spoke again. “Are you partial to tea?”

“Yes. I drink it often,” she answered.

“There are a few teas on the list that I gave you that you ought to avoid. One is moringa tea and the other is raspberry tea. They are human teas that may cause complications for your pregnancy,” he explained.

She nodded. “Thank you for telling me.”

“If you have questions about anything else on the list, let me know,” he mentioned. She smiled and nodded before leaving sickbay.

On her way to Sisko’s office, she encountered Kira, Garak, and Odo preparing to leave. Kira wore a Starfleet uniform. “Good morning. What’s going on?”

Kira spoke to her. “We’re leaving for Cardassia to help the resistance there.”

“Ah. I was hoping that you and I could talk again,” Winn stated.

Putting a hand on the other woman’s shoulder, Kira said, “I’m sure whatever it is, it can wait until I get back.”

Winn sighed at being brushed off, but understood the need for expedience. “Of course. I wish you luck, child,” Winn responded, resuming her walk toward Sisko’s office.

She stood at the door and pressed the chime. Sisko opened the doors to her. He eyed her curiously, seeing that she had not gone back to her golden kai robes, but had opted for a dress with different variations of purple and lavender flowers as the pattern. Four small braids by the crown of her head were pulled back into a bun with the rest of her hair at the back of her neck.

“Good morning, Kai Winn. I’m surprised that you’re not in the kai robes this morning,” Sisko remarked.

“Good morning, Emissary,” she said as she walked toward his desk. “Since I do intend to step down as kai, I feel much more comfortable in the outfit I am currently wearing. But I did not come here to discuss my choice of fashion with you this morning.”

Sisko sighed and folded his hands in front of him on the desk. “Won’t you have a seat?” he offered. She sat and he continued. “I still don’t trust him.”

She rested her arms on the armrest of the chair. “This is not about whether or not you trust him. I’ve pardoned him. You have no legal reason to keep in in your brig.”

“Then I have to ask why. Why would you pardon a man like him?” Sisko questioned.

Winn stood and began pacing. “Because I was like him, only it me took a while to realize it. The Prophets have forgiven him, and so have I. From him I learned that I needed to seek forgiveness as well. Whether or not you choose to believe me, I can see that he has changed. Also, I require his assistance.”

“What exactly do you plan on doing with him, if we do decide to release him?” the captain probed.

She folded her hands in front of her. “The Prophets have given us a task of setting up a school for the war orphans. I would also like to establish way for them to learn trades, either by interning with various people aboard the station, or outside correspondence.”

“Why do you want to do this?” he asked.

She stopped pacing in front of his desk. “For peace between our people. For years we have struggled with the shadows of the Occupation, but so have the Cardassians. The Occupation was wrong, but it’s time for reconciliation. I don’t want my – I mean, anyone else’s children to grow up in a world where they spend their lives trying to avenge the past.”

He did not seem to notice her slight slip at almost saying “my child” as she was speaking. Sisko raised an eyebrow and looked at her with wonder. “You’ve changed.

“As I’ve mentioned before, so has he. I know that there is a great deal of animosity between you two, and he has committed many crimes against you. I’m not asking you to excuse him, merely to defer the responsibility of his conduct to me,” she explained diplomatically as she sat back down.

“What do you need for the school?” he asked.

Her shoulders relaxed at the momentary change of subject. “Some funding would be nice,” she replied.

“I’ll talk to Starfleet and see what can be done,” he told her.

She smiled politely. “That would be most appreciated. Now as for Dukat-”

Sisko interrupted her. “I cannot, in good conscience, let that man walk the corridors free.”

“House arrest then. Release him into my custody, or expect me to be at your office tomorrow morning to resume the discussion,” Winn insisted.

Taking a deep breath, Sisko paused and mulled over her argument. _She’s going to be in my office every day until I let him out_ , he realized. _There is a war going on and I don’t have time for this_. “House arrest it is,” he acquiesced.

A small smile graced her face. “Thank you, Emissary. And I will find a way for him to walk through this station as a free man,” she commented with confidence.

He raised an eyebrow. “If you actually manage to do that, I will personally see to it that you get anything you need for the school.”

She smiled in a way that he recognized, a way that said she knew exactly what she was doing. “Why thank you, Emissary. That’s very generous of you.”

They walked to the brig to retrieve Dukat. He looked up from where he was sitting when she entered the room. Sisko pressed a few buttons to drop the force field. “Kai Winn, I release him into your custody,” he said.

_Finally_. “Thank you, Emissary,” she responded, walking toward Dukat. They met half way and hugged.

“You look beautiful,” he told her quietly.

She blushed. “Thank you. The Emissary wants you under house arrest for now, but we will figure a way out of this,” she reassured him.

The two went to Winn’s quarters while Sisko decided to have a chat with Admiral Ross. Back at Sisko’s office, Admiral Ross’s face appeared on his screen. “Ben, I thought you’d be gearing up for the next battle. What can I do for you?”

Sisko fingered the baseball at his desk as he spoke. “I’ve had an interesting proposal dropped in my lap. The kai of Bajor wants to start a school on the station for the Cardassian war orphans who were left on Bajor after the Occupation. She also wants to have some sort of training program or internship program for these children to learn trades as they get older. I don’t entirely approve of who she’s picked to help her with this plan, but in theory I think having the school and training programs is a good idea.”

Ross paused thoughtfully. “Her timing could be better, but having something like that on the station might be the olive branch we’re going to need between Bajor, Cardassia, and the Federation once this war is over. But why tell me?”

“She’s going to need funding. I suspect she’s already talked to Bajor. I don’t know what they would be willing to give her, but if she needs additional funds, perhaps Starfleet could help,” Sisko answered.

“Let me run this by my superiors and I’ll get back to you,” Ross ended.

After Winn let him know which room was his, Dukat replicated a few outfits for himself and took a sonic shower. He found Winn sitting on the couch, reading. “Anything interesting?” he asked.

She set the pad down on the coffee table. “I was just looking over some of the previous lessons that the children have been doing to see how they could be improved. They range from ages six to thirteen, so there are many different lessons to evaluate.”

“That sounds productive. Any ideas on how I’m going to work around this ‘house arrest’ situation?” he probed.

Winn sighed. “Since the Emissary won’t accept that I have pardoned you, we have to figure out a way to exonerate you.”

He replicated a cup of raktajino and sat down next to her. “That will be difficult. It’s a pity that I can’t just have another identity.”

“If you weren’t so recognizable, it would be possible,” she commented.

He smirked. “Having spent the last few days talking about my cousin, I wish that Drumer was here right now. He would think of a way out of this.”

“What happened to your cousin, Drumer?” Winn inquired.

Dukat sat back and stared out thoughtfully. “He joined the Obsidian Order. Funny thing about it was that he listed his name as just ‘Dukat,’ no first name given. It’s part of the reason why I ended up doing the same thing. I never quite figured out why he did it. Anyway, he and I have always looked a great deal alike. When he joined the Order, he would occasionally pay me to sit in on meetings that he considered boring and unimportant.”

Winn chuckled at the audacity. “And no one ever suspected?”

“No. And unfortunately the trade didn’t go both ways. He had no intention of sitting in on any of my meetings, or basic training for that matter,” Dukat mentioned.

“Sounds like he was exploiting you as only family can,” Winn teased.

“True, but I do miss him sometimes,” Dukat admitted.

“Has it been a while since you saw him last?” she asked.

He sighed and faced her. “Yes, far too long. However, I think he’s probably dead by now. There was an altercation some years back between the Obsidian Order and the Romulan Tal Shiar. A lot of Order members died during the fight.”

She patted his shoulder and said, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

Standing, he made his way over to a computer. “I think I can pull up part of his file.” After accessing Deep Space 9’s database and using a few backdoors and old passcodes, he had found what he was looking for. “There. Adami, here he is.”

She walked over to the computer and glanced at the file. The picture looked like Dukat, but the uniform was not the military uniform that she was accustomed to seeing. The word “Deceased” flashed across the top of the picture. “He could have been your twin,” she observed.

“Pity he wasn’t. I’m the one Sisko wants to permanently keep in the brig,” Dukat stated. As he continued to look at the screen, a solution to his problem began to form. He turned toward her. “What if my cousin defected instead of dying? What if I could switch places with him, one more time? I can say he was the Gul Dukat that everyone remembers, but I’m the Dukat who defected and is thought dead by the Obsidian Order. Unless they do a very intense DNA scan, it would be hard for someone to prove otherwise.”

She smiled. “Your plan has potential. We would need to figure out a way to spread the word that you are not Gul Dukat,” she mentioned.

He sighed. “The only way to do that and have the results we want would be for me to fake my own death. I need to think about this for a while.”

“While you do that, I will see how Deela and the children are doing,” she relayed. He nodded and she left.

All forty children and their five carers were sharing four rooms near the Promenade. They were eating lunch at the food court as Winn approached Deela. “I am sorry about this. I was unaware that they had just shoved all of you somewhere,” Winn expressed.

Deela shook her head. “It was an emergency evacuation. We were not planning on this being permanent.”

“It would be better for them to stay up here. You and I both know that they will never be truly accepted on Bajor,” the kai told her.

Sighing as she watched the children eat and talk, she nodded. One of the other carers, a red-haired woman named Nos Mara, commented, “You’re right. They deserve a chance to grow up without being taught to hate what they see in the mirror.”

One of the younger children looked up from her plate and noticed Winn. She walked over to her and smiled. “Hello, Kai Winn,” the girl said.

Winn smiled back. “Hello, child. Did you need something?”

The girl turned her head to one side as she asked, “Would you please braid my hair like you did for the other girls?”

“Of course,” Winn told the girl. Three more girls lined up to have their hair braided before Winn was able to leave.

“Be careful. They might start asking for that every time they see you,” Doro Pella, an older carer with gray streaks in her dark brown hair teased.

“I don’t mind. I will speak to the Emissary and try to find more rooms for you,” Winn mentioned.

“Anything you find would be appreciated,” Deela responded.


	15. Chapter 15: Rumors and Questions

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.”

Chapter 15: Rumors and Questions

Winn left Deela and marched toward Sisko’s office. When she noticed that he was not in his office, she decided to find his quarters. She pressed the door chime and waited. Kassidy, wearing a simple beige civilian top and slacks, opened the door and smiled in surprise. “Kai Winn, it’s nice to see you. What can I do for you?”

Winn smiled pleasantly. “I need to speak with the Emissary. He has probably seen enough of me already today, but it’s a matter of importance.”

“We were just going to sit down to lunch. Why don’t you join us?” Kassidy invited.

“You are very kind. Thank you,” Winn said as she entered Sisko’s quarters.

The captain was out of the room at the moment. Kassidy sat down on the couch and invited Winn to join her. “I’m glad you stopped by. We didn’t get much of a chance to talk the last time you were on the station.”

“No, we did not. Was there something in particular that you wanted to ask me about?” Winn inquired.

Kassidy shook her head. “I just thought that it would be nice to get to know the people that my husband works with.”

“How have you been settling in?” Winn asked her.

“I’m fine. Aside from realizing that I am not the cook in this family, things have been good. Since the war started, I haven’t been given as many duties as I would like, as a freighter captain, but I manage,” Kassidy replied. “How about you? How are you managing? I heard that you want to step down as kai.”

“I do. I intend to help the war orphans that were left on Bajor after the Occupation,” the other woman answered.

“I’d like to hear more about this school idea,” Kassidy encouraged.

Winn was telling Kassidy about the school and the training program idea when Sisko entered the room. His irritated gaze landed on the kai. “Kai Winn, I prefer to keep business at my office. With all due respect, what the hell are you doing here, in my home?” Sisko questioned.

As all semblance of politeness had suddenly been dropped, Winn faltered for the words to respond. Kassidy frowned at her husband. “Ben Sisko, be nice. She said that she had something important to discuss with you, so I invited her for lunch.”

He sighed and headed back to the kitchen. “Fine. I’ll get out a third bowl.”

Lunch was gumbo with okra, bell peppers onions, chicken, and andouille sausage. “This is delicious. I must borrow the recipe from you sometime,” Winn remarked between bites.

“Thank you. My father has a restaurant and it’s one of his recipes,” Sisko responded. Lunch seemed to have improved his mood. _I’m probably going to regret this, but it’s time I asked_. “So what did you need to see me about?”

“You have forty orphans and their carers sharing only four rooms. This needs to be a permanent arrangement, therefore they need more rooms,” Winn stated plainly.

His brow furrowed. “Rooms are not free. If you find a way to pay for them, then they can have rooms. Until then, unfortunately I can’t do much else,” Sisko explained.

“But there are several empty rooms due to the war,” Winn pointed out.

Sisko shook his head. “My hands are tied this time. It takes a certain amount of funding to run this station, even in war time. I cannot give you rooms that aren’t being paid for.”

“In that case, I will wait to hear back from my government,” she concluded.

After Winn had left his quarters and Sisko began cleaning up the bowls. “That woman is going to drive all of us insane,” he told Kassidy.

His wife smiled and shook her head. “Not all of us, just you.”

Winn arrived back at her quarters to find Dukat reading. He stood as she entered and asked, “How is everyone?”

She sighed with irritation. “There are still forty children and five carers to four rooms. I went to speak with the Emissary again. His wife invited me to stay for lunch. He said that he cannot give out long-term rooms without funds, so that means we have to be patient and see what First Minister Shakaar can find.”

“Patience is difficult, but it’s often the wiser route,” Dukat commented.

“Unfortunately. What were you reading?” she inquired.

He sat back down on the couch and she joined him. “I was just catching up on news about the war. I’ve tried thinking about ways to fake my death, but nothing useful short of having my corpse floating outside of the station comes to mind.”

“I’d prefer not to use that one,” she paused and rested a hand on his arm. “I would miss you.”

Taking her hand and kissing it, he responded, “We will figure this out eventually.”

She nodded. “In the meantime, there has to be some way to organize a program for the children to learn trades when they are older.”

He thought for a moment. “What we would need to do is compile a list of different businesses on the station with owners or employees who are willing to have apprentices. They would probably expect some compensation, so we would have to organize that too.”

“It’s a good start, but where would we get a list like that?” Winn inquired.

Dukat paused to consider their options. Then a smirk crossed his face. “I think that might be the easy part. I’m willing to bet that a certain Ferengi bar tender would know all about the businesses on this station.”

Winn smiled in agreement. “I think you’re right. I would suggest that you speak with him, but you’re under house arrest for the moment.”

“While that is true, why not invite him to come here? I’m certain that he wouldn’t refuse and invitation to drop in by the kai of Bajor,” Dukat suggested.

“Alright. I’ll contact him,” she said, walking over to the computer console. She hit the intercom button. “Computer, please locate Quark and open a channel.”

“Channel open,” the computer relayed.

“Quark? Are you there?” she inquired.

“Who is this? Don’t you know I’m busy?” he growled.

“This is Kai Winn. I have some business that I would like to discuss with you. Would you have time to talk this evening?” she invited.

There was a pause on his end, then he responded, “Alright. I’m intrigued. Just tell me when and where.”

Later after Winn and Dukat had eaten dinner, the door chimed. Winn opened it to Quark. “Welcome, Quark. Won’t you come in?” she greeted.

He entered her quarters and smiled. “I really have no idea what this is about, but any business-” he stopped suddenly, noticing Dukat calmly sitting on the couch in civilian clothes.

“Hello, Quark. It’s been a while,” Dukat stated calmly.

If Ferengi could turn pale, Quark would have been as white as a sheet. “I –what are you doing here? I thought you were dead!”

Dukat looked over at Winn and grinned. “This might be easier than we thought.”

“Let’s discuss that later though,” she told him before facing Quark. “There will be a school on Deep Space 9 for the war orphans of the Occupation. What we would like from you is a list of businesses willing to take on apprentices when the children are older so that they may learn a trade.”

Quark was still staring at Dukat. “Does Sisko know you’re here?” he questioned.

Dukat sighed heavily. “Yes. He is well aware that I’m here.”

Then the Ferengi looked at Winn. “And Sisko knows that he’s here with you?”

She folded her hands in front of her and answered calmly, “Yes. Now could we please resume the discussion?”

“Right,” Quark said with a nod. “It’s going to take a while for me to get a list like that, but I could do it quicker for a fee.”

“Five strips of latinum,” Winn stated.

Dukat’s brow furrowed. “Five? We’ll pay him three.”

Quark put his hands up. “Let’s not argue about hit. A compromise of four strips of latinum would be acceptable.”

“Fine. Four,” Dukat acquiesced as he stood to retrieve the latinum. “Now to the other matter. We need to fake my death. She’s pardoned me, but so far I’m still under house arrest. Since you already thought that I was dead, could you be persuaded to spread rumors of my demise?”

Quark scoffed as he accepted the four strips. “You’re physically on this station. It’s not going to work when people see you. Even out of uniform, you’re still Gul Dukat.”

Winn walked over to Dukat. “Only he’s not Gul Dukat. Gul Dukat was his cousin, Drumer Dukat. The Dukat standing before you is Gosrin Dukat, member of the Obsidian Order. He defected when the Order fought the Tal Shiar.”

The Ferengi laughed aloud. “Lady, if you really think that people are going to believe that, then I’ve got a summer cottage on Breen that I’d like to sell you.”

Dukat suddenly grabbed Quark by the collar of his ostentatiously orange shirt. “Don’t mock her.”

Quark looked over at Winn and said, “Sorry,” before Dukat released him.

“I actually do have a cousin who worked for the Order, and he’s supposedly deceased, so it isn’t as far-fetched as you would think,” Dukat mentioned.

He looked between the two of them and adjusted his collar as he smoothed his orange and blue jacket. “If you double what you just paid for the list, I’ll be happy to start some rumors.”

Dukat glared at him. “How about this, we let you live. In exchange for that, you spread a few rumors.”

“That’s good too. Have a nice evening,” Quark said as he scurried out the door.

Winn raised an eyebrow and looked over at Dukat. “Was nearly strangling him and threatening him really necessary?” Winn inquired.

“Kai or not, you deserve respect. What he said was rude,” Dukat replied as he sat back down on the couch. “I may be a better man than I was, but I’m not going to sit by and watch someone be disrespectful to you.”

“As much as I appreciate your defending me, there are less heavy-handed ways of going about it,” she remarked.

“I suppose,” he acquiesced, picking up the pad on the coffee table to resume reading the news.

Winn sat down on the couch and closed her eyes for a moment. She leaned on a pillow as her mind drifted through the continued preparations for the school. A short while later, Dukat glanced over at her to see that she had fallen asleep. He gently touched her arm. “Adami.”

She slowly sat up. “I hadn’t meant to do that. I haven’t sat down much today,” she said sheepishly.

“It’s been quite a long day. Maybe you should go to bed,” he suggested.

“Not yet. I’m still trying to figure out a few things,” she disagreed.

He stood and replicated a cup of jumja tea. Then he set the cup down in front of her. “You didn’t need to do that, but thank you,” she stated.

“You’ve spent the whole day taking care of other people. Let someone take care of you for the moment,” he persuaded as he sat down next to her.

She took a sip of the tea. “I just wish that today had been more productive.”

He smirked. “I would argue that your day has been quite productive. I’m not in the brig anymore, we’ve figured out a plan that has me switching places with my cousin, you are awaiting word on additional funding for the school idea, and we talked Quark into compiling a list of vendors who would be willing to have apprentices. Also, no one is chasing us, shooting at us, or trying to kidnap us. I don’t think that this has been a bad day at all.”

Setting the cup down on the coffee table, she grinned at him. “You’re absolutely right. This has been a good day,” she paused to yawn, “and a very long day.”

He took one of her hands and kissed it. “Goodnight, Adami.”

She stood, but bent toward him to give him a quick peck on the cheek. “Goodnight, Gosrin.” Then she hastily headed for her room.

Standing as well, he took the empty cup back to the replicator. As he walked toward his room, he glanced at hers and smiled. _Maybe house arrest isn’t such a bad thing after all_.

The next morning Winn woke up sneezing again. She dressed and quickly headed to sickbay for treatment, not bothering to notice that Dukat was sitting in the living room reading and drinking a raktajino. He was still there when she returned.

“Good morning, Adami,” he stated.

“Good morning, Gosrin,” she returned.

“I noticed that you left early. Where did you go?” he probed.

_Caught_. “I went for a walk,” she said evasively.

“Why didn’t you ask if I wanted to go? I may be under house arrest, but a brief walk in the early morning, when no one else is awake, probably wouldn’t be noticed by too many people,” he suggested.

“I apologize for not asking if you wanted to go. I figured after your stay in the brig that you were in need of a good night’s sleep and I didn’t want to wake you,” she remarked.

While the words sounded nice, he looked into her eyes and knew that there was more going on than what she had explained. “Is everything alright? Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. Everything is fine. Now let’s have some breakfast,” she said quickly, trying desperately to change the subject.

He set his empty mug back in the replicator. “You would tell me if things weren’t fine, wouldn’t you?” he questioned.

She grew quiet for a moment. “It’s not that simple.”

Walking up behind her, he gently grasped her shoulders. “Do you trust me?”

Winn turned so that they were facing each other. “This isn’t about trust. There are things that need to be taken care of before I explain more.”

“Then let me help you,” he persuaded.

“I’m fine. Everything is fine,” she repeated, moving toward the replicator to make breakfast.


	16. Chapter 16: New Strategies

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” “A Man Alone” is alluded to.

Chapter 16: New Strategies

Sisko granted Winn access to Keiko O’Brien’s old school room and the kai began taking inventory. A few closets within the classroom were still locked though. Winn decided to ask Sisko about them later. Over the next four days, a routine began to develop. Winn would wake up and go for a “morning walk.” Later she and Dukat would have breakfast and discuss news of the war and ideas for the school. Then Winn would go to the classroom to take inventory. While she was gone, Dukat would do additional research in the subjects that he planned to teach.

On the fifth day, Kira returned to the station with Odo. Winn was just leaving sickbay, smoothing a few wrinkles from her blue-white-and-gray streaked dress when Odo was brought in, his skin flaking off like dead leaves. “What’s happened?” she asked Kira.

“Odo is infected with the same disease as the female changeling. He didn’t want me to find out, but he couldn’t hide it from me anymore,” she answered. Though Kira had managed to keep her tears at bay, Winn could hear the emotion in her voice.

“I didn’t want you to worry, or to think less of me,” Odo rasped.

Kira moved to stroke his hair. “Shh. Don’t talk now. Just rest.”

As much as she wanted to offer comfort to Kira, Winn felt that her presence at that moment would be an intrusion and decided to return to her quarters.

Dukat was up when she returned. He noticed that she seemed distracted as she adjusted a few stray hairs from the two braids that encircled the crown of her head. “Has something happened?”

He could see the pensive look in her eyes as Winn faced him. “Kira has come back to the station with Odo. He has the same wasting disease that infected the female changeling.”

“She must be devastated,” Dukat concluded.

“She hides it well, but yes. I mean to talk to her later today,” Winn remarked, repining the two lower braids that wrapped around the bun at the base of her neck.

“That sounds like a good idea – wait. How did you find out about this?” he inquired.

“I passed them as I was walking by sickbay,” she explained, hoping that he would not ask why she was near sickbay.

After they had eaten breakfast, Winn was planning to search for Kira when she received a call from Bajor. “First Minister Shakaar, I wasn’t expecting to hear from you yet,” Winn commented.

“Kai Winn, I wanted to make sure that I got back to you as soon as possible. I’ve spoken with the rest of the government and they have decided to give you the funding you’ve asked for. The funds will be placed in an account that you and the carer Deela have access to,” he told her.

She smiled. “That is wonderful news!”

He smiled back, but then his brow furrowed. “However, I don’t think their motives are as altruistic as yours in this matter. Some of them wanted to get rid of all reminders of the Occupation and others wanted to relocate what they considered a ‘burden’ on our society.”

Taking a deep breath, she folded her hands in front of her. “One day they will understand. One day they will see that this is for peace. We cannot move forward with the hate of the past holding us back.”

“Which brings me to the next issue. Some of the others found out that you pardoned Dukat, and they aren’t happy about it. They want to have a vote of no confidence brought against you. Since you told me that you intended to step down as kai, I thought that you should know what you’re facing, if you change your mind.”

“I do intend to step down. In fact, send me the forms and I’ll do it now,” she requested.

He did as she asked. Within the next hour she had officially resigned. After sending the final forms to Shakaar, she left the computer console and walked over to the window. Dukat watched her with concern and moved toward her. “I know I keep asking this, but are you alright?”

This time she shook her head. “No. No I am not, but I’ll manage.”

Standing behind her, he places his hands on her shoulders. She leaned back slightly into his touch. “Is it leaving the role of kai that bothers you?”

“Surprisingly no. That part is almost a relief. They were going to give me a vote of no confidence. After all that I’ve done for Bajor… that’s what bothers me,” she admitted.

“Which is because you chose to pardon me. I’d understand if you wanted to rescind that,” he commented.

She placed her hands on top of his. “No. What I did, I did in the name of peace and forgiveness. I also need you here with me to help with the school.”

“No one ever said that paving the road toward peace was going to be easy,” he remarked.

She turned to face him and he pulled her into a hug. “I’m glad you’re here,” she told him.

“I could order a bottle of springwine for later, if you’d like. You can at least celebrate being free of your government,” he suggested.

_In my condition, wine is out of the question, but I’ll have to be tactful about it_. Shaking her head, she said, “I appreciate the idea, but no. I think I would prefer just a quiet cup of tea.”

He touched her face and looked into her eyes. She looked slightly lost, and weary. He wanted to tell her that everything would be alright, and that he was there to lean on if she needed to, but the words were not there. Instead he found himself leaning closer to her, and she was not backing away. One of his hands moved to her side and their lips touched in a gentle kiss.

“Sisko to Kai Winn,” the intercom interrupted.

They quickly backed away from each other as Winn hit the button to reply, “Yes, Emissary?”

“I thought that you would like to know what Starfleet has decided, regarding the school,” he began.

“I would. Please continue,” she stated.

“They have agreed to cover any additional needs that the Bajoran government is unable to fund,” he conveyed.

“Thank you for sharing such good news,” she responded.

“I thought I owed you that much,” Sisko said before ending the conversation.

Winn turned back to Dukat. “Well, if we had to be interrupted, at least it was for a good cause.”

“Remind me to find a way to disconnect that once in a while,” Dukat grumbled.

She laughed and nodded. “All in good time. You’ve figured out how to repair several things. I’m sure that it shouldn’t be too much trouble to disconnect something.”

“Considering Sisko’s penchant for bad timing, the sooner I figure it out, the better,” Dukat concluded.

“While you’re doing that, I really must speak to Kira,” Winn expressed.

“That’s a good idea. You’ll feel better and she probably will as well,” he surmised.

After letting Deela know about the funding, Winn decided to look for Kira at the shrine, reasoning that if she were in Kira’s position, the shrine would be her choice of location. As Winn had thought, Kira was just emerging from the shrine, wiping tears from her eyes. She looked almost startled when Winn approached. “Kai Winn, I wasn’t expecting to see you.”

“Hello ch-” suddenly calling Kira “child” felt inappropriate, “Nerys,” she addressed the younger woman. “Would you like to join me for tea? I’ve been wanting to talk with you.”

Kira gave her a small smile, realizing that for the first time Winn had addressed her as an equal. “I’d like that. Let’s go to my quarters.”

In Kira’s quarters, they sat down on the couch with cups of jumja tea. “How did you know I was here?” Kira inquired.

“You passed me in sickbay when you entered with Odo. You even spoke to me,” Winn answered.

“Now I remember. When we came to sickbay, it was a bit of a blur. He has the wasting disease,” Kira said as she closed her eyes for a moment. “He didn’t tell me! How could he not tell me? I know he wanted to protect me, but you don’t hide something like that from someone you care about!” Kira shouted in frustration.

Winn sipped her tea. “Don’t judge him too harshly. He was trying to spare you pain. He could see that you had a great deal on your mind, with regard to the war and planning a resistance with the Cardassians. He didn’t want to add to your burdens.”

“I know, but that still doesn’t make it right,” Kira growled. She sighed heavily and drank some of her tea. “I don’t want to talk about it now. Tell me what you’ve been up to.”

“I’ve been trying to secure funding for the school, and find a way to set up some sort of career training for when the children are older. We are also trying to find vendors on the station to help the children to learn trades,” Winn began.

“Do you have a list of vendors?” Kira questioned.

“Quark is helping us with that part,” Winn answered.

Kira raised an eyebrow and smirked. “You roped Quark into helping you? How did you manage that?”

“Persuasion and strips of latinum,” Winn relayed, also telling Kira that both Bajor and Starfleet would be helping with the funds for the school.

“Sounds like you’re really making progress. So who will be teaching?” Kira inquired.

“I will be teaching them, and so will Dukat. And the carers might teach a few things from time to time,” the older woman replied.

Kira looked at her incredulously. “Dukat teaching? You can’t be serious. Even the orphans know who he is. You can’t have someone with his reputation teaching school. It won’t work. What are they going to call him?”

“They will call him ‘Teacher Gosrin,’” Winn answered.

“’Gosrin?’ Where did you get that name from?” Kira questioned.

“It’s his first name,” she responded.

The younger woman smirked. “Just when I was beginning to think that not all Cardassians had first names… So what about his reputation?”

Taking another sip of her tea, Winn answered, “He had a cousin, who also went by ‘Dukat’ in the Obsidian Order. This cousin is presumed dead. We have decided that he will say that his cousin was the Gul Dukat that people remember, and that he is the Dukat who was in the Obsidian Order. Instead of being dead, he defected from the Order.”

“That’s quite a story. What are you going to say happened to ‘Gul Dukat’ then?” Kira probed.

“He died. No one has seen him for a while, so we have Quark starting rumors that he died,” Winn relayed.

Kira snorted. “How much did you have to pay Quark to get him to agree to that?”

Winn smirked. “Actually he agreed to that part for free. Gosrin… sort of scared him into it.”

The younger woman chuckled. “Well, I suppose there has to be one upside to having Dukat on the station.”

“I just hope that Quark can be convincing enough,” Winn mentioned.

“Quark gets results, but sometimes those results are not the most reliable. You should be careful not to trust him too much.” Kira set her cup down on the coffee table. “And I hate to tell you this, but no matter what Quark manages to tell people, your plan’s not going to seem very plausible unless you have a body.”

“That is part we can’t seem to figure out. Short of finding some other poor person’s corpse and making it look like Dukat, I’m unsure as to what to do,” Winn expressed.

“Changing someone’s corpse…” Kira trailed off in thought. “Ibudan. Ibudan managed to clone himself and then murder his clone to frame Odo. I’m not saying that we should clone Dukat, but what if we could make something else to look like him.”

Winn raised an eyebrow. “Do you mean make a model of him somehow?”

Kira paused as the idea began to take shape. “The replicators duplicate food from several different cultures. With a big enough replicator, they could duplicate a person, or even the limbs of a person. Blood can even be simulated. If we replicate Dukat, I could take him back with me and he could be found dead on Cardassia, as if he had been helping the rebellion. It might actually help the rebellion to gain support.”

“But what if they scan him? They will find out immediately that he isn’t real,” Winn pointed out.

“There are ways to fool sensors. If we implant a device in it that tells a scanner that it’s scanning Gul Dukat, then unless they cut the model open, they won’t know,” Kira hypothesized.

“I don’t know if that idea will work, but so far it’s better than anything else we’ve thought of,” Winn concluded.

“I’ll talk to the captain and Julian,” Kira offered. Then she faced Winn. “There was something else that you wanted to talk to me about.”

Winn folded her hands in front of her. “Yes. You see, I… have gotten myself into an awkward situation.”

“Do you mean by agreeing to be a teacher? I thought you said the Bajoran government was in favor of the school,” Kira mentioned.

“This has very little to do with the government, but it does relate to the school in part. When I was kidnapped by the Circle, I had left the resettlement center to visit a local doctor. Since arriving there, I had awakened sneezing, so I thought that I might have allergies to some sort of plant indigenous to the region. It turned out that I didn’t have allergies,” Winn started to explain.

The younger woman noticed the pensive expression on her face. “What was it then? Is that why you passed us in sickbay?”

The former kai nodded. “I was in sickbay for treatment to keep the sneezing at bay. I’m pregnant.”

Kira’s eyes widened in shock. “Who knows about this?”

“A doctor on Bajor who does not know my name, Dr. Bashir, and you,” Winn answered.

“You haven’t told Dukat yet,” Kira deduced.

The older woman sighed and looked away. “It’s not that I don’t want to tell him. I’m not sure how to go about it.”

“The one thing that you can be sure of with Dukat is that he will love your child. He loved his daughter, Ziyal, very much. You need to tell him,” Kira persuaded.

“That’s not the only issue,” Winn mentioned. “I will be teaching, which means that I am supposed to be an example of good morals to those children. Nerys, I cannot be pregnant and unwed if I’m teaching.”

“So you tell him and you make it clear that if he really is trying to, as the humans say ‘turn over a new leaf’ and be a better man, that he needs to do the right thing and marry you,” Kira persuaded.

Winn sighed heavily. “You don’t understand. If I pressured him into marriage and he ended up resenting me for it, I couldn’t bear that.”

Kira put a hand on Winn’s shoulder. _Why Dukat of all people? I could tell her about his bad habit of having Bajoran mistresses, but that won’t help. Maybe finding out that he’s going to be a father again will keep him in check_. “No matter the outcome, if you care about him, you owe him the truth.”

The older woman sat up straight and faced her. “You’re right. I need to tell him, but not today. I will tell him in my own time.”

Kira acquiesced and decided to let the matter drop. Winn decided that she was tired of replicating every meal and Kira accompanied her to the Promenade market for some groceries. Later after dropping off the food in Winn’s quarters and telling Dukat the idea for duplicating him, Kira and Winn spoke to Bashir and Sisko in sickbay.

“It seems that you won our wager,” Sisko told Winn. “Whatever supplies you need, I will make sure that you get them.”

Winn smiled in gratitude. “Thank you, Emissary. I have been working on a list.”

He gave her a half-smile. “I’m sure you have.”

“If it’s not too much trouble, there are actually two closets that are still locked in the classroom. Could you please send someone to open them? It would help to know what else needs to be written down for the inventory,” Winn requested.

“I can do that,” he said. Then he paused and turned to Kira. “So Colonel, his body is just going to show up dead on Cardassia?”

“We’ll take it with us during the next attack and leave it somewhere, probably stabbing it. With a basic scanner finding the identity to be Gul Dukat, they won’t ask too many questions,” she explained.

“Does that mean Dukat is no longer under house arrest?” Winn inquired with a triumphant smile.

“So it would seem,” Sisko said grudgingly.

When she returned to their quarters, Winn fixed hasperat soufflé for dinner. Dukat took a bite of it and smiled in surprise. “This is the best version of this dish that I’ve had. It’s delicious.”

She blushed at the compliment. “Thank you. The food tastes so much better when I can use actual ingredients instead of the replicator.”

“Convenience verses flavor. So what did Sisko think of Kira’s plan for replicating ‘Gul Dukat’?” he asked.

Winn ate a few bites of her food. “He and Dr. Bashir seem to think that the idea is plausible.”

“If even they think that the idea might work, then it’s time to worry,” he concluded with a smirk.

They finished their food and she stood to clear the plates. “Also, I have other good news.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“You are no longer under house arrest, once news of ‘Gul Dukat’s’ death is made public,” she relayed.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to come and go as I please on this station,” he stated, taking his plate and following her.

“You said yourself that ‘patience is difficult, but it’s often the wiser route,’” she quoted with a smile as all the plates were set in the sink.

Saying thank you felt very insufficient in that moment. “This would have been almost impossible without you,” he began, taking one of her hand in his and kissing it. He brushed her cheek with his other hand and gently kissed her. “Thank you,” he said as they parted.

“You’re welcome,” she said with a small smile as she blushed and turned her attention back to the dishes.

Later they sat on the couch reading. After a while he noticed that she was leaning on his right side. He smiled and put his arm around her. She leaned further into him and he realized that she was nearly asleep. “You haven’t stopped moving since we arrived at the station. Maybe it’s time you rested for a while. Take a day off and do something for yourself,” he told her.

He felt her shake her head. “Too much to do,” she mumbled.

When he was sure that she had fallen asleep, he kissed the top of her head. “I know there’s something you haven’t told me; it’s probably one of the reasons why you don’t sit still for very long. I wish you would tell me what it is,” he said quietly.

He gently woke her and ushered her off to bed. Then he returned to the couch and had a cup of red leaf tea, pondering what she could possibly be hiding from him and why.


	17. Chapter 17: Questions and Answers

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.”

Chapter 17: Questions and Answers

Odo remained in sickbay with Dr. Bashir looking for a cure while Kira and Garak returned to Cardassia the next morning with the Dukat model. Two days later, higher-ranking members of Starfleet and Bajor were informed of “Dukat’s” death.

Winn and Dukat were sitting down to breakfast, having decided to try scrambled eggs and bacon. Dukat had also replicated a bottle of Earth hot sauce. Winn unscrewed the lid and smelled it. “Are you sure that you want to put that on your breakfast?”

“Apparently humans like this sauce on their eggs. It can’t be that unpalatable,” he remarked.

He dumped some of it all over his eggs. Halfway through the meal, he started to cough and replicated a glass of water. She raised an eyebrow. “Does that count as palatable, or unpalatable?” she teased.

Shaking his head, he downed most of the glass. “It’s a different sort of spicy than I’m accustomed to. The taste is, however, palatable,” he said hoarsely. He coughed through the rest of his breakfast. He cleared his throat a few times after the meal, but the hoarseness lingered.

As she was cleaning up the plates, Quark called her over the intercom. “I’ve got a message for Kai Winn from the vendors on the Promenade,” he began.

She answered the intercom. “I’ve resigned as kai, but I am here. What do they want?”

“They want to meet with you to discuss the details of having apprenticeships,” Quark explained.

“When would they like to meet?” she asked.

“As soon as possible, upstairs in my bar,” the Ferengi answered.

Winn looked back to Dukat. “Half an hour should work,” he mentioned.

“Please tell them that I will meet with them in half an hour,” she told Quark.

“I hate to bring this up, but if all of you are going to be borrowing the upstairs section for this meeting, it means that paying customers aren’t using that space,” Quark added.

“You will be compensated for the use of the upstairs,” Winn said dryly.

“That’s fine. I’ll make the arrangements. Now as for refreshments that you might want-”

Dukat interrupted Quark. “The vendors can pay for their own refreshments.”

“Is that you, Dukat? You sound terrible,” Quark responded.

“He’s just a bit hoarse. Will there be anything else?” Winn asked.

“Not at the moment,” Quark ended.

After the Ferengi had left the intercom, Dukat spoke. “Why do I get the feeling that he’s going to be a problem?”

“If you hand not manhandled him, he probably wouldn’t be,” she reminded as she stood. “I have a meeting to prepare for.”

“I’m coming with you,” Dukat relayed.

She shook her head. “They have barely gotten the model of you back to Cardassia. The official reports of your death haven’t been released to the regular news media yet. They will think you’re still Gul Dukat.”

“Quark has been spreading rumors. We’ll have to hope that rumors are enough for today,” he suggested, still sounding hoarse.

“You will only get yourself into more trouble,” she argued.

“I want to make certain that the vendors don’t try to cheat you,” he mentioned.

Winn was not in favor of the idea, but realized that she could not talk him out of accompanying her. The vendors were already sitting at tables on the upper level when they arrived. She walked toward one end of where they were seated. They stopped talking, but not because of her presence: they noticed Dukat standing behind her.

She spoke, not realizing that they were staring at Dukat. “Thank you for coming. We have children from an orphanage on the station and when they are older, I would very much like them to learn trades, with your help.”

“All of us here are willing, if you pay us. We cannot afford to do business on this station while training someone,” a Kartarian vendor mentioned.

A Bolian vendor stood. “Could we address the other issue in this room first? Apprenticeships aside, why is Gul Dukat part of this conversation? Why hasn’t someone called for security?”

“I heard he was dead,” a Trill vendor a few tables back said.

“Open your eyes. He’s right over there,” a Bajoran vendor behind him stated.

Conversations began as murmurs, but were steadily growing louder. Winn tried to get their attention, but was unable to be heard over the noise. Then she spotted someone’s empty cup. She hit it on the table a few times and the noise died down. “You want to address this, then fine. Gul Dukat is dead. The man before you is not Gul Dukat. This is his cousin.”

Some of the vendors laughed. “Do you seriously expect us to believe that?” the Bajoran vendor questioned.

Winn opened her mouth to speak, but Dukat put a hand on her shoulder and stepped forward. “I am not Gul Dukat,” he stated, his voice still hoarse from breakfast. He cleared his throat to no avail. “I defected from Cardassia several years ago and recently arrived on the station. We are trying to help war orphans. Are you people going to sit here and waste time debating who I am, or are you going to help these children?”

Though the vendors continued to stare, because Dukat’s usually distinctive voice was hoarse that day, preventing him from sounding like they remembered, it appeared that the vendors began to believe him. “We still want payment for this service,” the Bolian vendor requested.

The former kai recalled Sisko’s offer. “I think that can be arranged. Please let us know your terms and we will contact you once we have allocated the funds,” she told them.

“I guess we can live with that,” another Bajoran vendor said.

The vendors soon left and Winn noticed Quark waiting at the top of the stairs. “That was quite a performance, you two,” the Ferengi remarked.

“I’m not sure what you mean,” Winn stated.

“Oh come now. You had most of the vendors actually believing that he,” Quark paused and gestured toward the Cardassian, “isn’t Gul Dukat.”

Dukat crossed his arms. “Is there a point to this?”

Quark stepped closer to them, as if he had somehow gotten the upper hand in the conversation. “I’m here for legitimate reasons. You two owe me for the use of the upstairs.”

Winn made her way over to him. “Of course. How much do we owe you?”

“Triple what you paid me to help compile the list of vendors,” he said frankly.

Dukat stared at him in irritation. “Triple? That’s extortion!”

The Ferengi smirked. “You’re right; it is. You see, I realized that your threats don’t work on me if you’re hiding on this station.”

“Fine, we’ll pay you to spread rumors, but triple is outrageous,” Dukat tried to reason with him.

Quark cross his arms and leaned against a column. “If you want me to keep spreading rumors for you, so that people don’t think that a box was shipped to Cardassia with a label that reads ‘Gul Dukat, some assembly required,’ that’s my price.”

The Cardassian clenched his fists and was about to respond further, but Winn quickly placed a hand on his arm. “Let me handle this,” she said quietly.

He turned to her and sighed heavily. “I suppose we could try it your way this time.”

Winn walked toward Quark and smiled politely. “I apologize for the way my…” she paused to find the right word “associate treated you at our previous meeting. We will pay you what you ask. However, if you lower the fee for further meetings that we might need, I have contacts on Bajor that I can recommend your establishment to, so that you would increase your business from Bajor.”

The Ferengi stroked his chin, weighing her suggestion. He grinned and faced her. “I like the way you think. Was there anything else you wanted?”

“Just that you keep spreading rumors for us. Do we have a deal?” she probed.

“How much could you increase business?” he responded.

“By at least 50 percent,” she told him.

“Eighty percent,” he haggled.

“Sixty-five percent,” she negotiated.

“Deal,” he said as they shook hands.

After paying Quark, Winn decided to call in a favor. When she and Dukat reached their quarters, she spoke to the captain on the intercom. “Hello, Ms. Winn, how can I help you this time?” Sisko questioned.

“Hello, Emissary. The vendors that we would like to work with for the children’s eventual apprenticeships want to be paid for their services. Would Starfleet be able to assist with that?” she asked.

“That won’t be a problem,” Sisko responded.

“Thank you. We shouldn’t need to trouble you further,” Winn relayed.

“Let’s hope you’re right,” the captain ended.

She faced Dukat at the end of the conversation. “I think he’s tired of me.”

Dukat chuckled. “He should realize that the sooner you can get things running smoothly, the sooner you will not need to bother him anymore.”

Later Winn headed to the old classroom to continue making inventory lists. Several hours had passed and Winn had not yet returned from taking inventory. Dukat decided to go in search of her.

The two closets were finally unlocked. She opened the door to one of them and jumped back as a few poorly stacked boxes fell to the floor. They were full of colored pencils, crayons, water color paints, and other art supplies. One glancing into the first closet told her the entire thing was in disarray. “That’s what I get for bothering the Emissary one too many times,” Winn said aloud.

She used her electronic pad and tried to continue with the inventory list, moving aside posters, construction paper, and other boxes, but as the hours wore on, she had developed a piercing headache. Sitting down at the desk did not seem to help.

Dukat found her sitting at the teacher’s desk, holding a report with one hand while wincing in pain and holding her head with the other hand. She looked up from the desk, hearing someone enter the room. “Gosrin, what are you doing here?” she asked.

He quickly made his way over to her. “When you weren’t back yet, I was a little worried. Are you alright, Adami?” he asked.

She let out a long sigh. “The two closets are a frightening mess. Making an inventory list for them is going to take days. Not only that, but my head feels like a mine field that someone keeps setting off.”

He touched her cheek and brushed it with his thumb. “Come home.”

She knew in her current state that arguing to stay longer would be useless. Nodding slowly, she stood and followed him back to their quarters. He led her to the desk chair and ushered for her to sit. Then he put his hands on her shoulders and neck, giving her a massage. The effect of the tension leaving was almost immediate. “If I had known that this was one of your talents, I would have borrowed you for this sooner.”

He chuckled. “All you had to do was ask.” Then he began undoing the double braid coil that her hair had been done in that day.

Half of the pain of her headache left. “As much as I like having my hair up, I think your idea is better for the moment.”

“I have learned a few things over the years about women and hairstyles. Sometimes the more elaborate hairstyles pull on the scalp and can make a headache worse,” he remarked.

Then he led her from the desk to the couch. Once she was comfortably lying down, he took a chair that was next to the couch and moved it closer to her so that they could talk. “I think part of your headache is from your efforts to do everything yourself,” he assessed.

She sighed. “You are probably right.”

“Then give me something to do. I’m here to help you. You don’t have to do this all on your own,” he persuaded.

“I need help sorting through those two closets,” she expressed.

“Not a problem. Just tell me where you want to start and in what order you would like things. Some tea might help your headache. Would you like a cup?” he offered.

“Yes, thank you,” she responded.

He stood and walked over to the replicator. “The humans have this tea called moringa tea. It’s supposedly very healthy. I could-”

“Not that one!” she said quickly. “Jumja tea is fine.”

He replicated a cup of jumja tea and brought it over to her. “What’s wrong with the other one?”

She sat up and accepted the tea. “Dr. Bashir told me that it may cause complications for certain health conditions,” she stated.

He opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it. He spoke after he had resumed his seat. “Are you going to tell me what’s really going on now?”

She took a few sips of her tea and faced him. Kira had been right, as usual. He deserved to know the truth. “I leave our quarters early every morning.”

“I’ve seen you a couple of times. You said that you were going for a walk, and that everything was ‘fine,’” he recalled.

“I have been seeing Dr. Bashir for sneezing treatments. You don’t hear me, but most days I wake up sneezing,” she admitted.

His brow furrowed in confusion. “We’re in space. What could you possibly be allergic to in space?”

She could not help smirking at him. “I know you know the answer to this one. Why else do Bajoran women sneeze, if not from allergies?”

As he sat thinking, she could see the wheels turning in his mind. Suddenly he turned back to her wide-eyed. “You’re pregnant?”

“Yes,” she replied calmly.

“How long have you known?” he inquired.

“Since I visited the doctor on Bajor shortly before being kidnapped,” she answered.

He stood and went to the window for a moment. _Why didn’t she tell me? It’s because I’m Cardassian. It’s because I’m Gul Dukat. A child. She knows how important children are to me and she didn’t tell me. Maybe she wasn’t going to. Maybe I was never supposed to know_ , he thought to himself. “When were you going to tell me?” he questioned, still facing the window.

She could hear the irritation in his voice. Though her head still hurt, she stood and walked over to him. She placed a hand on his shoulder. “Forgive me, Gosrin. I never meant to hide this from you. I was going to tell you when we arrived at the station, but then you were arrested. I was going to tell you when you were out of the brig, but there were too many other things that needed to be organized. We needed to find a way to have you stay on the station without being hunted down. We needed to set things in motion for the school.”

He turned to her. “So you do intend to keep the child?”

She smiled back. “Of course. I should have realized what was going on when I saw the girl in the vision from the Prophets. We are going to have a daughter, and she is a gift from the Prophets, a sign of true peace.”

His mind drifted back to his vision. “The half-Cardassian, half Bajoran girl with hazel blue eyes…” he paused and touched Winn’s face, “like yours. When I was warned about the Circle, she said to ‘protect them.’ Now I understand.”

“Do you forgive me?” she pleaded.

He nodded. “Yes.”

She winced and put a hand to her head again. He walked her back to the couch. Once seated, she spoke again. “There is another reason that I’ve delayed in telling you. As a teacher for this school, I’m supposed to represent a moral example. I cannot teach pregnant and unwed. I didn’t want to pressure you into marriage.”

Taking her right hand in his left, he joined her on the couch. “The right thing to do in this situation is for me to marry you.”

“I didn’t want you to feel like I forced you into it,” she tried to explain “I could probably work around the issue if I created the lesson plans and let Deela teach-”

He could not let her finish. He had thought about marrying her since Dr. Tomora had asked if Winn was his wife. He interrupted her with a light kiss. When he pulled back, he brusher her cheek with his right hand. “How could you think that I wouldn’t want to marry you?”

“So we are agreed then?” she inquired.

Smirking at her need for an exact answer, he kissed her forehead. “Yes. We will get married.” She looked away pensively. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Now we need someone to marry us. I don’t think any of the vedeks I know would agree to it,” she commented.

He sighed and leaned forward, placing his hands on his knees. “Which means that we need to ask the Emissary.”

“Who probably has no intention of doing us any unnecessary favors,” she concluded.

Gently he put a hand on her shoulder. “Let me worry about that. Why don’t you rest for a while?”

“That sounds like a good idea,” she responded, standing and walking toward her bedroom.

Dukat left their quarters and sauntered off toward Sisko’s office.

Sisko had been reading reports from Admiral Ross and General Martok, as well as news. The news reported that Gul Dukat was found dead stabbed in an alley on Cardassia Prime. He looked up when the door chimed and opened the door to the last person he had expected to see that day. “Gul Dukat,” he stated.

Dukat shook his head. “Gosrin Dukat these days,” he added.

The captain folded his hands on his desk. “You and I both know that’s a load of, to use an old Earth term, hogwash. Now what are you doing here?”

The Cardassian stepped inside the office. “I know that I’m probably the last person you want to see right now, but there is a matter of urgency that I need to speak with you about.”

Sisko raised an eyebrow. “You’re a free man. I can’t imagine what you might need from me.”

Dukat sat in a chair in front of Sisko’s desk. “I’m not here for myself. I’m here for her.”

Sighing through his teeth, Sisko leaned forward. “I have given her everything that she has asked for. What could she possibly need, and why are you here on her behalf?”

“If you must know, she has a very bad headache. I told her that I would handle this matter. It concerns the school,” Dukat began.

“Enough has been said and done on that particular matter. And why is that so urgent?” Sisko questioned.

Dukat stood and slowly paced the office. “A situation has come up. In order to teach, she needs to be married. Since no vedek in his right mind would marry us, logically we decided to ask you, as the Emissary, to marry us.”

Sisko blinked in annoyance. _The audacity! Dukat may have changed but he’s still asking for far too much with a request like that_. “I don’t owe you two anything. You’ve got a lot of nerve, thinking that since you’re a free man, that I’m going to help you.“

The Cardassian sighed heavily. “It’s a moral situation of a very personal nature.”

The captain scoffed. “Just because she’s uncomfortable living with you doesn’t mean that I’m supposed to help you. It’s not my problem!” Sisko argued.

“I know that you don’t owe us any favors, but this is the last thing that I will ever ask from you. You have no idea how much the school means to her,” Dukat tried to persuade him.

Sisko sat back in his chair. “It’s still not my problem! Now get out of my office!”

Dukat stopped pacing and sat down again. “Benjamin, if you have any shred of compassion for her-”

“Give me one good reason why I should listen to anything you have to say!” Sisko interrupted, glaring at Dukat.

“She’s pregnant,” Dukat admitted. “She is supposed to be a moral example to those children. She can’t teach if she is pregnant and unwed.”

“Oh,” Sisko responded, pausing at the awkward realization of what he had just been told. “That explains why she’s been in such a hurry to get everything in motion.”

“Now do you understand the seriousness of this?” Dukat expressed.

Sisko looked into the face of his former adversary and saw sincerity. “I do. How long have you known?”

“I only learned of it less than an hour ago,” Dukat responded. “Will you help us?”

If someone had told him six months ago that Gul Dukat would be sitting in his office, wanting to marry Kai Winn, who happened to be pregnant with his child, Sisko would have laughed in their faces. “Yes. I’ll help you, but this had better be the last time I see you in my office."


	18. Chapter 18: A Moment of Clarity

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” I could find very little on the Bajoran wedding ceremony, so most of it is made up. I took a few things from Rom and Leeta’s wedding.

Chapter 18: A Moment of Clarity

They had decided to marry two days after Dukat had spoken with Sisko. Kassidy came over in the morning to ask Winn if she needed help with anything. Winn had a specific hairstyle in mind and was grateful for Kassidy’s assistance. They met in Sisko’s quarters for the ceremony.

Dukat had opted for a human tuxedo with a black bowtie. Winn wore and ivory-colored dress with floral embroidery around the sleeves and at the hem. Her hairstyle started with two thin braids that had threads of gold and ivory encircling the crown of her head, followed by two more small braids with the threads in them. The two small braids were woven into a braid with the rest of her hair and that braid was curled under into a bun at the base of her neck.

As they stood for the ceremony, Dukat held the Bajoran wedding bracelets for Winn while she held a wedding ring for him. Cardassian men usually did not wear anything to indicate that they were married. Dukat saw value in the human concept of letting others know that you are married and decided that the ring was a symbol that he could accept.

Sisko stood between them. “We are gathered here to unite this man and this woman in marriage,” he said.

The vows were given in Bajoran. Dukat spoke first. “I take thee, Winn Adami, to be my lawfully wedded wife, in wealth or poverty, in famine and harvest, in health or illness. For as long as I live, may we never part. Your trials are my trials. Your triumphs are my triumphs. Your goals are my goals. May the Prophets guide us.”

Winn followed with her vows. “I take thee, Gosrin Dukat, to be my lawfully wedded husband, in wealth or poverty, in famine and harvest, in health or illness. For as long as I live, may we never part. Your trials are my trials. Your triumphs are my triumphs. Your goals are my goals. May the Prophets guide us.”

Sisko hand them a ceremonial bowl. “As you share this bowl, you will share your lives. Drink.”

They did as he requested and then Sisko put the bowl down. “You may now exchange the bracelets and the ring,” he added.

Dukat put the bracelets on Winn’s wrists and she put the ring on his left finger. Sisko spoke again. “You are now husband and wife. Go with the Prophets.”

Kassidy and Jake clapped, being the only witnesses. Winn would have liked to have Kira present, but that was simply not possible in the timeframe. Alvas, klavaatu, and larish pie were served as refreshments, along with springwine. Both Winn and Kassidy opted for water.

Winn spoke with Kassidy after the ceremony. “You don’t like springwine?” she inquired.

Kassidy smiled. “Actually I just found out that I’m pregnant, so anything like that is off the menu for me.”

“Congratulations then,” Winn responded.

“To you as well,” Kassidy stated.

Later that evening in their quarters, Winn was trying to take down her hair. “It’s a pity that something so beautifully elaborate is also so troublesome,” Dukat remarked.

“Agreed. Could you please help me with this?” she asked.

He gestured for her to sit down in the desk chair and began slowly removing the hair pins. “This is more complicated than your other arrangements. No wonder it took two people to put together,” he remarked, pulling out a couple of pins.

She worked on a few other pins. “Kassidy was worried that it wouldn’t hold for the ceremony, so she made absolutely sure that nothing was going to move.”

Dukat managed to get the last pin out of one of her top braids. As he began to remove the threads, his cufflink caught on another hairpin. “Adami, we have a problem. I think I might be stuck.”

“Does it help of I move toward you?” she asked, leaning back toward him.

“The couch might be a better place for this,” he suggested.

She stood and they made their way to the couch. As they sat and he tried again, he realized that his cufflink was not going to budge. “I don’t know why I can’t get this loose,” he complained. “This is infuriating.”

There was no way around it. Gul Dukat, former Prefect of Bajor, former government leader, and rogue captain during the war between the Klingons and the Cardassians, was stuck in a woman’s hair. Winn realized the ridiculousness of their situation and started laughing.

“Adami, that isn’t helping. You need to hold still,” he told her.

“I… cant… help it. I don’t… know… what… to do,” she said as she continued laughing.

Hearing her laugh, he began laughing too. “This is bad. We… have… to find… a way… out… of… this.”

Eventually they stopped laughing. “Let me try from my angle,” she suggested. After some pulling and twisting, he was free. “There. Now let’s undo the rest of…” she trailed off, realizing that the embroidery on her sleeve was now stuck in her hair. “Now I’m stuck.”

“I think I can get you out,” he stated. Slowly he managed to extract her sleeve from her hair.

Eventually they managed to remove all the hairpins and then unbraid all the threads. “I think there is a lesson in this,” he remarked with a smirk.

“No more two-person hairstyles,” she responded.

“Are we teaching tomorrow?” he inquired.

“Yes,” she answered.

“Which means that we should probably call it night and get an early start,” he concluded as he stood. He began to undo his bowtie, but his cufflink caught again. “I don’t believe this. Apparently I’m doomed to get stuck in things tonight.”

“I’ll help you,” she offered, standing and walking over to him. She moved behind him and freed the cufflink. Then she untied the bowtie and while moving in front of him. “And what is the lesson this time?” she asked, teasing him.

He grinned sheepishly. “No more human cufflinks.”

Her hands had moved from his bowtie to his shoulders. He moved a wavy piece of hair out of her face and brushed her cheek with his hand. Not wanting to wait for any intercom interruptions, he leaned forward and kissed her. At first he was tentative, not wanting to scare her off, still unsure of how she really felt. He increased the pressure and tugged at her lips with his. It felt familiar and different at the same time. She responded, unaware that her hands had moved from his shoulders to the ridges of his neck.

He pulled back wanting more, but afraid to ask. “Goodnight, Adami,” he said as he moved away from her.

“Goodnight, Gosrin,” she said as she slowly let him go.

Why had he stopped? Was he already regretting his decision to marry her? They each walked toward their separate rooms. She paused at the door, wanting to turn around and ask if she could join him that night, but she held back, thinking that he had married her because he was intent on doing the right thing.

He stopped in the doorway, wanting to ask if he could join her that night, but he wanted to presume nothing. That she let him kiss her did not mean that she loved him. He would not take advantage of her.

Two days after the wedding, Winn was walking past the food court and decided to have a cup of tea after a day of teaching. Before she reached the replimat, she spotted a young woman in a Starfleet uniform, sitting by herself with her arms in front of her on the table. The young woman had the short black hair and a round face, with the spotted markings of a Trill.

“Hello. Are you alright?” Winn asked her.

The woman quickly looked over at her. “Kai Winn! Or is it just Winn now? We’ve met, only we haven’t met. I mean you’ve met Jadzia. It’s confusing, but we’ve sort of met before. I’m Ezri Dax.”

They shook hands. “It’s nice to officially meet you. I know that I wasn’t the most hospitable person to your predecessor, but would you like to join me for a cup of tea?”

“Sure,” Ezri said with a nod.

Winn walked to the replimat and returned with two cups of jumja tea. “When I walked over, you looked as though you might need someone to talk to, or at least someone to listen,” Winn remarked.

Ezri accepted the cup as Winn took a seat. “How do you choose between two men? And how do you know when you actually love someone?” Ezri asked.

“Don’t you have eight life times to answer those questions with?” Winn inquired.

Sighing, Ezri sat back in her chair. “That’s part of the problem. I’m having trouble separating Jadzia’s feelings for Worf from my feelings for Worf, and Jadzia’s feelings for Julian from my feelings for Julian.”

Winn sipped her tea. “I think the two questions are related. Let’s start with how you know you love someone. You start seeing the little things he does. You find yourself just watching him, not for a particular reason. He’s someone who helps you, cares about you as you are, and helps you find the better version of yourself.”

“Is that like someone who wants you to change for them?” Ezri asked.

“No,” Winn said, shaking her head. “It’s not that you want to change for him, but rather he helps you see how you can be a better person. He’s also someone who tells you when you are wrong. He’s an equal, a partner, not a subordinate. He’s someone you want by your side. He’s someone you trust like a best friend, but he’s so much more than that.”

“I like your explanation, but I still don’t know what to do,” the younger woman expressed.

“I have a few more thoughts on this. He’s someone who knows you better than you know yourself, someone who sees what your needs are, as you see what his needs are.” She paused, as if something caught her eye. Winn continued speaking, looking past Ezri. “Then one day you see him and it feels like waking up. The one who makes you feel like that is the one you should choose. Excuse me.” Winn left the table.

Ezri turned around to see her walking toward Dukat. _I wonder if someone else just had a moment of clarity_ , Ezri thought to herself with a smile. From what she had heard and what little she had seen, he was not the same man who had accidentally killed her predecessor.

As Winn had been talking to Ezri, the realization of the depth of her feelings for Dukat had suddenly hit her. Seeing him pass through the food court, she realized that she loved him. All this time, all that had passed between them,, wandering around the countryside, escaping from danger, and trying to get the school started. He had been by her side, asking if she was alright, helping her letting her know that she was not alone. She loved him, without a doubt. The clarity of it was almost daunting. She had left Ezri and decided to catch up with Dukat.

How to tell him was something that she had not figured out yet. He noticed her over his shoulder and smiled. “Where are you off to, Gosrin?” she asked.

“I’m looking for a certain ship model for a physics demonstration. I thought that maybe the vendors here might have such a thing,” he explained.

“I was just having tea with Ezri Dax,” she mentioned.

He stopped walking suddenly and faced her. “I’m surprised that she would even talk to you after what I did to her predecessor.”

“You were not in control of your actions,” she tried to reassure him.

“I still feel terrible about that,” he said, more to himself than to her.

_Now is not the right time to tell him_. “I’m planning on trying a new recipe tonight, something I borrowed from the Emissary’s wife Kassidy,” Winn told him.

“What is it?” he inquired.

“It’s a surprise,” she replied.

She left him to find the ship model while she went to their quarters to make dinner. They had not noticed a brown-uniformed Bajoran security officer watching them from the upper level.

Later when Dukat returned to their quarters, Winn had bowls of gumbo ready to eat. Dukat looked at the rice, okra, chicken, sausage, and shrimp and ate a spoonful. “This is delicious. So it’s a human recipe?”

“Thank you and yes, it is. Kassidy said that it’s one of the Emissary’s favorites. His father owns a restaurant. They cook something called Cajun food,” Winn responded.

“It’s a different sort of spicy than hasperat, but still delicious,” he commented.

After they had finished the meal, she cleaned up the dishes while he made adjustments to the model and wrote down a few notes of discussion for the students. She kept looking over, watching him work. He happened to glance up after a while to find her watching him. “Did you need something?” he inquired.

“No. I just like watching you tinker with things,” she admitted.

He raised an eyebrow, but when back to the model. He peered over at her every once in a while. She had finished cleaning up and was going over her own lesson plans. If she was looking up as well, she would smile and they would both return to their work. _Something’s changed._ _She seems warmer, more friendly_ , he thought to himself.

On another part of the station, a Bajoran security officer sat in her room, cleaning the new phase rifle that she had confiscated off a Koberian arms smuggler. Sito Joli held the weapon and pointed it at the mirror. “You think you’re so smart, Dukat. You think you can just walk through this station like anyone else. But I know who you are, and you will pay for what your people did to my sister, you’ll pay for all of it.”


	19. Chapter 19: Endings and Beginnings

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.”

Chapter 19: Endings and Beginnings

Over the next few days Winn and Dukat began to settle into a routine. She would take an early walk to sickbay. They would eat breakfast together when she returned. Then they would go to the school and teach, have a lunch break, and then teach for another couple of hours. When the school day was done, they would have tea and go over lessons, sometimes discussing what worked and what did not. Then they would have dinner and read in the evening.

Ezri and Bashir married. Winn was invited. Dukat was surprisingly invited as well, but chose not to attend due to what had happened to Jadzia. Soon after the wedding, Sisko and Bashir left Deep Space 9 for another series of battles with the Dominion.

After two more months, the war with the Dominion finally ended and the crew from Deep Space 9 returned home.

It was lunch break at the school when Winn heard the door. Deela and the other carers had already taken the students down for lunch. Dukat was about to ask Winn what she wanted for lunch. He opened the door to Ezri.

She looked up in surprise. “I was hoping to talk to Kai Winn. I brought sandwiches for the two of us,” said lieutenant. “Oops. I forgot again. I don’t know what to call you.”

Winn stood from where she was seated at the desk. “Come in, Ezri. We were just about to have lunch. Since I’ve resigned, it’s now ‘Adami’ or ‘Teacher Winn’ to the children.”

Ezri stepped inside the classroom. Dukat tried to slide past her. “I’ll just be going.”

“Wait,” Ezri said, grabbing his arm. He stopped and faced her with confusion. “I’ve done a lot of thinking, about the past, about people, and about second chances. I know that you were not in control of what happened to Jadzia, so I wanted to let you know that I forgive you.”

He had not expected it at all. Blinking in astonishment, he could only say, “Thank you. It’s much more than I deserve.” Then he looked over at Winn. “Adami, I’ll grab something at the food court.”

When had left, Ezri found a chair and pulled it in front of the desk. Then she brought two wrapped sandwiches out of a bag that she was carrying. “It means a lot to him,” Winn told Ezri.

The younger woman smiled back. “I know.” Winn thanked her for the sandwich. Ezri continued talking as they ate. “I have news that I wanted you to be the first to hear.”

Winn smiled. “I’m honored, but why me?”

Ezri smirked. “You’re the reason I ended up marrying Julian. That time I asked you about love and choosing between two men really helped.”

“I’m glad to have helped,” Winn responded.

“Anyway, I just found out that I’m pregnant. Julian knows, because of course he was the one giving me a checkup, but other than him, I wanted to tell you,” she explained.

“Congratulations. Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl yet?” Winn inquired.

Ezri took another bite of her sandwich and shook her head. “I told Julian that I didn’t want to know just yet. I wanted to see if I could guess first. Do you know what you’re having?”

Winn’s pregnancy had become visible, so it was no secret to the people that she associated with. “We’re having a girl,” she answered.

“Have you picked a name yet?” the other woman probed.

Winn finished her sandwich. “I have a few ideas.”

“That day you and I talked, and then you suddenly left, did you ever tell him how you felt? I know that you had what I would call a moment of clarity,” Ezri questioned.

The older woman’s brow furrowed and she shook her head. “I haven’t found the right time. I think he married me because he wanted to do the right thing. He has become my best friend, but I don’t know if it’s more than that.”

Ezri put a hand on Winn’s arm and told her, “You won’t know unless you ask.”

Winn sighed. “You are probably right.”

The lieutenant smirked again. “I know I’m right. I’ve got eight lifetimes to consult. I need to go.”

As she stood, Winn said, “Thank you for lunch, and for the chat.”

Ezri smiled as she reached the door. “Any time. I’m not just a counselor. I think of you as one of my friends.”

“I’m glad. I consider you a friend as well,” Winn remarked.

Winn was eating lunch at the replimat the following day when she saw a familiar face. Dukat had stayed in the classroom during lunch to finish a project for a demonstration. Winn stood and made her way toward the space station’s new guest. “Hello, Bato,” she greeted.

He faced her and smiled politely. “Kai Winn, I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“It’s a rather long story, but I have been here helping with a school for the war orphans,” she explained.

“I heard you resigned as kai,” he mentioned.

She nodded. “The school required my full-time attention. What brings you to the station?”

The dark-haired stocky Bajoran waved at a table nearby for its occupants to join them. Three children, all with dark hair like their father, wandered over. “I thought that it was time to show my children that the universe is bigger than Bajor.” He paused and put a hand on the shoulder of his children as he introduced each one of them. “This is Kata, my oldest. She is thirteen. Erat is eleven, and Niko is eight.”

Winn smiled politely at Bato’s daughter and sons. “Welcome to Deep Space 9.”

“Aside from teaching, how have you been?” Bato asked her.

“I am well. I have married,” she mentioned.

Bato noticed the wedding bracelets. “Congratulations then. Your husband is fortunate.”

“Thank you,” she said with a smile. “So am I.”

The Bajoran man looked around the room. “Is he here with you?”

She shook her head. “No. Actually he and I both teach. I would offer you a tour of the station, but I have to return to the students after my lunch break.”

“That’s alright. I didn’t mean to interrupt your day. It is good to see you though,” Bato added.

“I’m glad that you were able to return to your family. Do you mind if I buy them jumja sticks before I leave?” she offered.

“Thank you. I’m sure they would like that,” he responded. After buying the treats, Winn returned to the classroom while Bato and his children wandered through the Promenade on their own personal tour.

Later he wanted to walk the station on his own and instructed his children to stay in their quarters. While alone, he decided to wander by the classroom. He peered into the window to see dozens of Cardassian children, some raising their hands, others sitting quietly. He also noticed Winn working with a few children. Suddenly he noticed that a Cardassian man was teaching on the other side of the room. Only two people were teaching. Winn had told him that her husband was a teacher. Bato had figured that she had married the Bajoran man who had helped to rescue her from Jarro’s clutches.

Bato waited outside the door as class was dismissed. He stood out of the view of the window on the door and overheard Winn tell her husband that she had some grading to do and would be home later. He waited until the Cardassian had left before entering the room. Winn looked up and smiled pleasantly.

“Hello again, Bato,” she greeted.

He frowned at her and walked over to him. “It’s not a bad thing that you teach them. I understand that. But did you also marry a Cardassian?”

She folded her hands on her desk and took a deep breath, mentally arming herself for what felt like a confrontation. “Yes, I did.”

“How could you do this? You’ve betrayed your own people!” he yelled.

Winn sat up straighter in the chair. “I did no such thing. I am trying to facilitate peace for our people, to teach the children here that peace is possible.”

“You can’t trust them! They lie! They kill us for entertainment!” he argued.

She stood. “Bato, the Occupation ended. Now everyone is trying to find ways of working together. Bajor needs to understand-”

“No. You resigned. You don’t have a say in what is better for Bajor this time. I’m not listening to any more of your lies,” he spat as he stormed out of the classroom.

Winn decided that going home would be more productive. She entered her quarters quietly. Dukat looked up from where he was sitting on the couch. “I thought you were staying longer to finish grading a few things.”

“Everything I need is actually on this pad,” she stated as she replicated a cup of tea.

“Is something wrong?” he inquired.

She took her tea and the pad, sitting in the living chair next to the couch. “Bato stopped by the classroom after you had left.”

“You mentioned that he was on the station with his children, and that he seemed friendly enough,” Dukat responded.

Sighing, she took a sip of her tea. “He was friendly. Then he saw both of us teaching and decided to tell me how my marriage to a Cardassian was betraying the Bajoran people.”

Dukat’s brow furrowed. “You don’t actually believe that, do you?”

She shook her head. “No. I have no regrets.”

“But…” he prompted.

“But I have spent several years being concerned with other people’s opinions. It is not an easy habit to break. Is Bato’s opinion the same as the rest of the Bajoran people?” she asked.

Dukat reached over to her and put a hand on her arm. “Consider the source. The man worked for the Circle. Of course he is going to be very biased. Also, he waited until your husband was out of the room to tell you off.”

“Bato probably considered it a Bajoran matter,” she surmised.

He shook his head. “That’s not the point. He waited until you were alone. Did he give you the chance to explain?”

“He told me that he would not listen to any more of my lies and then he left,” she recalled.

“What would you have told him, if he had given you the opportunity?” Dukat probed.

She set her tea cup down and sat up straighter. “You and I are walking the path that the Prophets wanted. We are trying to give the future generations a chance to work together peacefully. We are working to build a future of cooperation and no one’s poor opinion is going to stop that.”

He smiled at her conclusion. “That’s what I figured your answer would be. I’ll see if I can find something decent from the replicator’s menu for dinner.”

Bato’s children had just finished their dinner at the replimat. He had sent them along to their quarters while he took a brief walk on the upper deck. He scowled as he saw the Cardassian children eating their dinner below him.

“It’s disgusting, isn’t it? All these Cardassians here,” a blonde Bajoran security officer standing next to him remarked.

“At least they’re not on Bajor anymore,” Bato remarked. “I’m Bato Ravi.”

“Sito, Joli,” she responded. “They won’t be a problem for much longer anyway.”

(A/N: I know this is a short chapter. The next one will be longer.)


	20. Chapter 20: A Choice

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” TNG’s episode, “The Lower Decks” is alluded to.

Chapter 20: A Choice

_Dukat was on Bajor in his Cardassian skin, walking on a path flanked by tall grass and jungle-like vegetation. He came to a fork in the road and stopped. Down the left path, he could see Bajoran Resistance fighters with phase rifles pointed at him. The right path had some sort of beast with sharp teeth that looked incredibly unfriendly._

_Kira appeared next to him, but it was not Kira. It was the image of Kira that the Prophets were using. “The cost of his arrogance is not over. He must choose.”_

_“What do you mean? What is this about?” Dukat questioned._

_An image of Winn appeared, holding the hand of the half-Cardassian, half- Bajoran girl that he now recognized as his future daughter. “They will be protected. They are not part of this cost.”_

_“What is the cost then?” he inquired._

_Suddenly he was back on the Promenade on Deep Space 9. An image of a blonde Bajoran security officer that he almost recognized spoke. “You cannot escape this cost. A choice is required of you.”_

_Dukat eyed her with curiosity. “What is the choice?”_

_He found himself in the caves where Jarro and the Circle had been hiding. Kira’s image appeared again. “You must choose between war and peace.”_

_Staring at her in confusion, he asked, “What do you mean? I am already following your path, working with the school to help pave the way for peace.”_

_“You must choose the path, despite the cost,” Kira’s image told him._

He woke and sat straight up in bed. “Computer, what time is it?” he inquired. The computer informed him that the hour was still early. It was one of the off-days for the school, but he did not feel like attempting to sleep longer. He dressed, concluding that any further sleep was forfeit after a dream like that. Replicating a cup of red leaf tea for himself, he sat down in a living chair and stared out of the window.

Being awake so early, he heard Winn sneezing as she woke. A few minutes later she was dressed and heading out of their quarters when she noticed him. “Good morning, Gosrin. You’re… not usually… awake this early. Is… something wrong?” she asked between sneezes. She wore a maroon dress with white flowers and white accents by the neck and sleeves.

“I couldn’t sleep. I had some thinking to do,” he explained.

Winn sneezed several more times. “I… should go. We will… talk… more when… I… come back,” she stated before leaving.

Dukat made his way to the computer console. Though he had not yet sorted out the dream, he decided that he wanted one less matter to worry about. He sent a small file to Sisko, beginning it with, “I know that you don’t want to hear from me, but I suspect my life will be in danger. I have one more favor to ask of you. I ask it of you not as the commander of this station, or even as the Emissary. I ask this from one husband and father to another. If anything happens to me, please see to it that Adami and the baby are looked after.”

When she returned, he had sent the transmission and had resumed staring out of the window. He faced her when she neared him. “I thought you weren’t going to wear maroon anymore.”

She smirked. “It has some white in it, so I think this dress will be alright. What I would like to know is, what has you so unsettled?”

“I think the Prophets warned me in a dream. They told me about a cost that I cannot avoid. They told me that I had to choose between war and peace,” he began.

Winn raised an eyebrow. “But you’ve already made that decision.”

“Which is one of the reasons why the dream is so puzzling. Was there anything else?” she inquired.

He nodded. “They said that you and the baby are not part of this cost. Apparently it has something to do with my arrogance.”

“Perhaps it will become clear to you in the next few days. In the meantime, we ought to eat breakfast,” she commented.

He went over to the replicator to make a request. Sparks suddenly started shooting out. “It didn’t do that earlier when I ordered tea,” he mentioned.

“Can you repair it?” she asked.

Kneeling down and removing a panel, he examined the wires and connections. “I can repair it, but I need a few parts. I’ll have to see if someone has the parts on the Promenade. Do we have anything else to eat?”

Sighing, she shook her head. “I was planning on perusing the Promenade for more food. We seem to be out of everything that I would usually use to make breakfast.”

“Then it looks like we’re having breakfast at the replimat,” he concluded, standing.

Her brow furrowed. “What about the Prophets’ warning?”

“We need food and parts. We’ll just have to be incredibly watchful,” he remarked.

They headed to the Promenade first, in order to purchase the necessary parts to repair the replicator. The parts went into a small bag that Dukat had brought with him. Winn wanted to hold the bag while Dukat picked up breakfast at the replimat. While they were eating groatcakes and alvas, movement toward the other side of the food court caught Dukat’s attention.

He placed a hand on top of Winn’s. “We should leave,” he suggested.

She raised an eyebrow. “But I haven’t finished-”

“We should leave now,” he told her. Noticing the seriousness in his face, she stood with him and the two headed out of the replimat, toward the turbolifts.

They rounded a corner and were abruptly face to face with a familiar blonde Bajoran security officer. Dukat recognized her, not only from his dream, but also from the group of security officers who were with him when he rescued Winn from the caves. “If I had any idea that catching you would be this easy, I’d have done it a lot sooner,” she drawled, pointing a Bajoran phase rifle at him.

“If you put down that rifle, perhaps we can discuss this,” Winn suggested calmly.

Sito Joli scoffed. “Talking won’t solve this. He’s going to pay for what they did to my sister!”

Dukat put his hands up in defense. “Let her go. Do what you want to me, but please let her go. I’m the one you want.”

“I have no intention of hurting her, but she is going to watch you die,” Sito spat.

“You don’t want to do this,” said a familiar voice behind Winn. Bato stepped out from behind her to face Sito.

Sito looked over at Bato. “His kind murdered my sister!”

“And they murdered my wife, but listen to me. Killing him won’t bring either one of them back. This has to stop,” Bato tried to reason with her.

“Don’t pretend that you don’t want to see him dead as much as I do. My sister was on an away mission, helping one of his kind to defect. They had to cross a check point. Her name was Sito Jaxa. She went along as his Bajoran prisoner, a Bajoran rebel. The Cardassians at the checkpoint just executed her,” Sito Joli explained.

“They had my wife and a group of others dancing for them during the Occupation. She missed a few steps and they killed her for being clumsy,” Bato relayed. “I understand how angry you are, but killing him won’t fix anything.”

“Oh yes, it will. The Cardassian government will see that Cardassians aren’t safe on Deep Space 9. No Cardassians will come here and the orphans will be shipped back to Cardassia,” Sito related. “Killing him will fix more than leaving him alive will.”

“But you’ll still hurt over your sister’s death. Give me the rifle. No matter how many of them you kill, no matter how many you send somewhere else, the pain is still going to be there,” Bato conveyed.

Dukat seized the opportunity when Sito looked away to talk to Bato to grab the end of the weapon. Sito would not release her hold and the struggle for the weapon began. Sito had an iron grip on the phase rifle, but Dukat was not letting go as he held the muzzle of it tighter. Suddenly she moved oddly and her grip loosened ever so slightly. As his hold tightened, he realized how easy it would be to turn the weapon toward her. If it fired, he could legitimately claim self-defense.

Then he realized it: this was the choice. He could allow her to be killed, but it would be seen as another Cardassian shooting a Bajoran. It would only add to a war of subtext that had been between the Bajorans and the Cardassians since the Occupation. There was another choice. He could aim it at himself and allow her to fire it, not knowing exactly where the blast would be. If he angled it up slightly, he might get out of it with less of a deadly injury than a direct blast to his midsection. But a phase rifle would probably kill him no matter where the blast occurred. This was the cost, one of them would die and cause more friction between their people, or one of them would die and the eventual result would be something toward peace.

_Prophets, protect Adami and the baby. I choose peace_ , he thought to himself as he let go of his hold on the weapon. Sito fired the weapon at him, point-blank. Or at least that was what should have happened. Sito stared at the phase rifle in shock. By the annoyed expression on her face, Dukat realized that she had fired the weapon, but nothing had happened. “It didn’t work! Why didn’t it work? No! No! No!” she screamed.

She let the phase rifle drop to the ground and with an irritated growl, she shoved Dukat backwards. He tripped over a couple of chairs and landed on the desk, hitting his head hard. He was vaguely aware that someone had called security and a few Bajoran security officers had arrived. He felt the back of his head and found it damp. When he moved his hand forward, he saw the blood. His vision began to blur.

An older security guard grabbed Sito’s arms and held them behind her. Winn had raced over to his side when he had collided with the deck. Bato had called security. She looked over at one of the security guards. “He needs to be beamed to sickbay,” she told him.

Loro Van hit his combadge. “Loro to Doctor Bashir, Dukat has been injured and needs medical attention. He seems to have hit his head and is bleeding.”

“I’ll beam him directly to sickbay,” Bashir said. Loro placed the combadge on Dukat and he dematerialized.

After Dukat was gone, Winn looked over to Sito, who was still being held by the security guard. “Arrest her for attempted murder,” Winn instructed.

Ty Aran dragged her away from the scene. “I knew that someday your temper would get you in trouble. You couldn’t even let me finish my morning coffee, could you?”

“It should’ve fired! It’s all ruined now!” Sito complained.

“Where is Security Chief Odo?” Winn inquired.

“Arresting a Koberian captain for selling illegally acquired Bajoran weapons,” Ty answered.

Loro picked up the phase rifle and looked it over. “Must be defective,” he remarked. He aimed it at the floor and pushed the trigger. Everyone nearby jumped back in shock as a five-foot charred hole appeared in the deck floor.

Winn’s eyes widened as she stared at the floor. _If that rifle had gone off and hit Gosrin, he would have had no chance of survival. It would have blown a hole through him. I could have lost him that quickly_ , she realized. Everyone’s voices were beginning to sound like scratching and the room was beginning to look fuzzy. Winn placed a hand on a table, bracing herself and taking a deep breath. _I refuse to faint in front of this many people_ , she decided. After a few more breaths, the voices returned to normal and the room settled back into focus.

Bato was speaking to her. She turned toward him and he decided to repeat himself. “I said, Ms. Winn, would you like me to walk you to sickbay?”

“Yes, thank you,” she responded.

He offered her his arm and the two made their way to sickbay. When they reached sickbay she looked frantically for Dukat. She spotted Bashir and a few nurses toward the back of the room and charged toward him with Bato nearly running behind her. Bashir looked up at the nurses. “He’s stable and surprisingly still conscious,” the doctor stated.

Winn approached him. “Thank goodness. Will he be alright?”

Bashir looked over his shoulder at her, surprised to see her standing there. “He’s had a concussion, but aside from some bleeding, nothing is broken. I need to run a few more tests, but I can probably release him by the end of the day.”

“Good. I want to speak to him now,” Winn remarked. I was not a request.

Dukat was on a biobed, propped up at an angle. Winn stood by his right side and reached for his hand. Bato walked over to Bashir. “She almost passed out on the Promenade. You should get her a chair.”

The doctor complied and placed a chair behind Winn. She sat down and faced Dukat. “They have arrested that young woman. What were you thinking, letting her fire the rifle? You have no idea how fortunate you are that it did not go off. You could have very easily been killed!” she exclaimed.

Bashir ran a tricorder around her to check her vital signs. She swatted it away, as if it was a persistent insect. Dukat spoke. “The Prophets said that I had a choice to make. If I had turned the weapon toward her and shot her, it would have been another Cardassian shooting a Bajoran and no good would have come from that.”

“But you would have been defending yourself. Surely-” she paused to swat the tricorder away again. “Doctor, I am fine.”

“If she had shot me, it would have been a Bajoran trying to avenge a death, and everyone would have learned how very ineffective that line of thinking has been. They would have seen that it’s time to do things differently,” Dukat insisted.

Winn responded. “By the kindness of the Prophets, she did not shoot you, but that was still an incredibly dangerous-” she paused again and turned toward Bashir. “Doctor, there is nothing wrong with me. I am trying to have a conversation with my husband.”

“Your blood pressure spiked. I was told that you almost fainted. Becoming highly agitated in your current health condition could cause complications for you and your baby,” he tried to persuade her.

She sighed heavily. “Doctor, I would be less agitated if you would please keep that device out of my face and allow me to finish my conversation,” she said calmly.

He set the tricorder on a table. Then he replicated a glass of something orange. “I promise not to bother you if you drink this orange juice,” he remarked, holding the glass out to her.

Sighing, she accepted the glass. “Very well.” She downed the glass and then handed it back to him and then faced Dukat again.

“The rifle was probably defective,” the Cardassian suggested.

Winn adamantly shook her head. “No, it wasn’t. One of the guards tried it later and shot quite a hole in the floor.”

“Thank goodness that wasn’t me,” Dukat commented.

“But it could have been. You have no idea how close I came to losing you,” she pointed out.

“I made the choice for the greater good,” he argued.

“That was very brave, but very foolish. Don’t you ever do anything like that again!” she scolded.

“I didn’t intend-” she cut him off with a sound kiss. She had one hand pressed to his right shoulder and the other hand touching his left cheek. It took his mind a moment to catch up as he wrapped his arms around her back and held her closer. She tasted like orange juice. She was kissing him without being prompted, without him making the first move, out of her own free will.

As she slowly pulled back, he tried to focus his thoughts. _We were talking about something important. What were we talking about? It was something about being brave, but foolish_. “Agreed,” he said when she faced him again.

“I will see you at home,” she commented before leaving sickbay. He watched her go, still tasting orange juice and wondering if he had hit his head harder than he had realized.

Bashir had watched the entire scene and could not resist smirking at Dukat’s astonished expression. The Cardassian noticed the smirk out of the corner of his eye. “Find something amusing, Doctor?”

“Only that almost dying has some advantages,” Bashir responded.

Bato offered to walk Winn back to her quarters. She almost accepted, but then remembered that they still needed food, and she wanted to stop by the shrine. She visited the shrine to thank the Prophets that Dukat was still alive. Then with Bato’s help, she soon had the grocery shopping completed. She was also still carrying the bag with the necessary replicator parts. They spoke on the way to her quarters.

“Ms. Winn, I owe you an apology. I was rude yesterday. I said things to you that I shouldn’t have,” Bato stated.

“Forgiven,” she responded.

“The truth is that you were right, about the need for peace between Bajorans and Cardassians. Your husband was willing to sacrifice himself so that someone would see how useless it is to continue fighting a war that is long over. Though I don’t understand it, you and he are walking the path of the Prophets,” Bato admitted.

“I only wish that more people would come to that realization,” Winn commented.

Bato paused, choosing his next words carefully. “That woman who’s now in the brig needs help. I’d like to help her. If you don’t press charges, I can take her back to Bajor with me.”

Winn was quiet for a moment before replying. “That woman nearly murdered my husband. I might have to think on that one for a while.”

“I understand. If you should change your mind, I know of a monastery that is good at helping people deal with grief,” he explained. “My children and I leave tomorrow.”

“I will let you know by then,” Winn told him. After he had left, she decided that a sonic shower and a change of clothes might improve her mood.

She donned a dress with a blurry blue-green pattern. The braids that she had adjusted began slightly below her temples and had a blue thread woven in both of them. They continued down and then crisscross twisted around the rest of her hair, which was simply pulled back. Having asked the computer for the time after she had finished with her hair, she decided to cook an early dinner.

She had almost finished cooking ratamba stew when she saw a slight shimmer and watched as Dukat was beamed directly to their quarters. “That was unexpected,” she stated with a smirk.

“The good doctor felt that he owed me a favor for pestering you earlier today,” Dukat mentioned.

“How considerate of him,” Winn remarked.

“Indeed,” he responded. Then he eyed her from head to toe, noticing her outfit. “You look lovely, by the way.”

She blushed and smiled. “Thank you. I have decided that I’m done wearing maroon.”

Dukat chuckled. “There are definitely worse things in life than never wearing maroon again.”

Winn smirked. “Fortunately that dress can be recycled here.”

“Something smells familiar,” Dukat commented, turning his attention to the kitchen area. He noticed the green stew on the stove and smiled. “Is that your friend’s poison soup?”

Winn laughed. “It wasn’t poison, but yes. I’m cooking ratamba stew. The replicated version of this lacks flavor.”

Dukat noticed the bag of parts on the coffee table. “I can fix that after dinner.”

“No. You can rest today and repair it tomorrow,” she told him.

He sighed. “If you insist. Have you heard from Indra or Sten lately?”

“Only once in a great while. They live in such a remote place that any communication is difficult. They know we are married and their family is fine,” Winn mentioned.

The door abruptly chimed. “Were you expecting company?” Dukat inquired.

Winn shook her head. “Not that I know of.” He moved to answer it, but she stopped him. “After today’s excitement, I think I would like to know exactly who is at the door before anything else happens.”

He nodded in agreement. “Computer, who is at the door?”

“Captain Sisko,” the computer replied.

“I’ll answer it,” Winn stated. She walked over to the door and pressed the button to open it. “Emissary, come in. To what do we owe this visit?”

Sisko stepped inside and folded his hands in front of him, looking from Winn to Dukat. “I heard what happened earlier on the Promenade and I wanted to personally see that you were alright. I apologize that our security guards were not screened better.”

“Thank you, Emissary. We appreciate your visit. What will be done with the young woman?” Winn inquired.

“That’s up to the two of you. If you press charges, she will probably face trial at a Federation court. Since Dukat supposedly defected from Cardassia and Bajor would be unlikely to try her, the Federation would be the next court,” Sisko mentioned.

A timer beeped from the kitchen area. “Please excuse me. I really must get back to the stew,” Winn said, heading over to the stove.

“I actually need a word with Dukat,” Sisko stated.

“As long as he is not under arrest. She assaulted him,” Winn told the captain.

“Ms. Winn, Dukat is not under arrest. I just need to speak with him for a moment and then I’ll leave you both to your dinner,” Sisko explained.

“Captain, we can talk outside,” Dukat suggested.

He and Sisko stepped out of the door and into the corridor. “I received the message that you sent this morning,” Sisko began.

“Ah, yes. Fortunately it was unnecessary,” the Cardassian responded.

“Here is some advice, from one married man to another, before asking someone to look after your wife, should something happen to you, discuss it with her. The two of you should be making provisions like that together,” Sisko advised.

Dukat considered the captain’s words. “I see your point. I’ll talk to her.”

“That being said, if anything were to happen to you, between Colonel Kira and I, we would see that your family would be cared for. Just because you and I don’t particularly like each other, and she and I have had our differences, does not mean that I would want any harm to come to her,” Sisko admitted.

The captain had caught Dukat genuinely by surprise. He had expected more of an argument. “I know that you and I will never be friends, but I hope you know how much I appreciate that.”

Sisko nodded. “I think it’s time for a truce. I won’t throw you in the brig if you don’t give me a reason to throw you in the brig.”

Dukat smiled and said, “I think I can accept that.” The two shook hands and Sisko left.

The Cardassian returned to his quarters to find Winn making the final adjustments to the stew. “What did the Emissary want to see you about?” she inquired.

“It was something that I had mentioned to him this morning,” Dukat began, retrieving two bowls and setting the table. “And he and I have come to a truce of sorts.”

“That is good news,” Winn remarked, filling the two bowls with stew.

They ate in silence for a while. Then Dukat faced her. “What should we do with the Bajoran woman in the brig? Sisko left the decision to us.”

“Bato wants to take her back to Bajor, to a monastery that can help her with her grief,” Winn relayed.

“That was awfully charitable of him,” Dukat remarked.

Winn took a few more bites of her stew. “I think that he feels partly responsible for what happened.”

“So does Sisko,” Dukat added, eating more of his stew.

Winn raised an eyebrow. “What makes you say that?”

Dukat set his spoon down for a moment. “If I was running this station again, I would feel responsible for everything that happened here.”

“What did you talk to the Emissary about this morning?” she probed.

He knew that she would not let the matter rest. “I had asked Sisko to look after you and the baby if anything unfortunate were to happen to me. He said that I should have talked to you about such plans, but that he and probably Kira would be willing to do that.”

“I appreciate your attempt to protect us, but the Emissary was correct. You should have talked to me about it before asking him,” she remarked as they finished their stew.

“Who would you prefer to ask?” he inquired as he collected the bowls and put them in the sink.

“I would have talked to Kira first. Fortunately today worked out far better than you had planned,” she pointed out.

The door chimed again. Dukat and Winn faced each other in confusion. Then Dukat asked, “Computer, who is at the door?”

“Colonel Kira,” the computer answered.

Winn opened the door and smiled to see Kira. “Nerys, what brings you by?”

Kira returned the smile and entered the room. “I heard about what happened today and wanted to see for myself that you were alright. I’m sorry that the security team took so long to reach you. There were some other matters that came up at the same time.”

“It was a bit harrowing, but as you can see, Colonel, both of us are fine,” Dukat drawled.

Kira rolled her eyes. “I knew that you’d be alright. I’ve made peace with the fact that this station is stuck with you.”

“And yet you don’t want to make peace with me directly,” Dukat teased.

The younger woman rested her hands on her hips. “You want peace? Fine. Here is my ultimatum: if you treat her well,” she paused to look over at Winn, “and stay out of trouble, then I have no reason to bother you.”

“That works,” Dukat conceded.

“Regardless of why you stopped by, I am glad to see you,” Winn expressed.

“I’m sorry that I missed the wedding,” Kira remarked.

“I wanted to invite you, but it needed to be done quickly and you had a mission to finish,” Winn stated.

Kira spoke. “So what have you two been up to lately, aside from today’s incident?”

“We have been teaching at the school. I teach literature, grammar, public speaking, and art. He teaches math, science, basic engineering, and physics. The five carers teach those same subjects, just not as in-depth. They also teach history,” Winn replied.

“You’ve also been braiding a lot of hair,” Dukat teased.

Winn laughed. “He’s right. Before classes, I have a line of girls wanting to have their hair braided.”

“I can see why. Your hair looks great!” Kira exclaimed.

“Thank you. I don’t mind. It’s become just a normal part of the day,” Winn mentioned.

“What will you do when the baby’s born?” Kira inquired.

“I’ll still plan some of the lessons, but Deela and the other carers will take over for a while,” the older woman answered.

“Have you decided on any names yet?” the younger woman asked.

Winn looked over at Dukat. “Not exactly, but I was considering ‘Lilan.’”

He smiled. “After your mischievous best friend. That would be fine.”

Kira raised an eyebrow. “’Lilan,’ as in ‘Kata Lilan?’ My father and other Bajorans I’ve known used to tell stories about her. She was a huge pain in Cardassia’s backside.”

“She was, but she was creative in her torment. Cardassians gave her a certain amount of respect for the chaos she caused,” Dukat remarked.

“And you want to name your daughter after her? I’m sure if she was still alive, she would appreciate the irony,” Kira teased. “I should go. I just came by to check on you.”

“Thank you for your concern,” Winn expressed. “I am glad that we were able to visit.”

“I have one question for you, where are you putting the baby? I didn’t notice a nursery,” Kira asked.

Winn sighed. “For a few months, she will be staying with me. After that, I’m not really sure. We haven’t discussed it.”

Kira raised an eyebrow. “You two are still sleeping in separate rooms, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” Winn admitted.

The younger woman’s brow furrowed. “Why? You’re married.”

“I’m not going to pressure him into something that he does not want,” Winn answered simply.

“But he loves you. He did marry you. He’s been teaching with you,” Kira pointed out.

“He has been doing what he considers is the right thing. That is all,” Winn mentioned.

Kira gave her a half smile and shook her head. “You should see the way he looks at you. I can still barely stand him, but even I can see that he loves you.”

“He is protective of me, and the baby,” the older woman managed.

“Do you love him?” Kira inquired.

Winn took a deep breath. “More than I thought possible.”

“Then you are both being ridiculous to think otherwise. I have to go, but please think about what I’ve said,” the younger woman expressed.

“I will keep it in mind,” Winn responded.

She reentered her quarters to find Dukat seated on the couch. “Is everything well with Kira?” he inquired.

“Yes. She just had a few ideas that she wanted to share with me,” Winn replied as she walked over to him. She paused as she reached the couch, resting a hand on her abdomen.

“Adami, are you alright?” Dukat questioned.

Winn took one of his hands and placed it on her abdomen. “She’s been very active lately.”

It was a simple gesture, yet it was also the first time that she had allowed him to feel the baby kick. “Maybe you should visit the doctor again, just to be certain that everything is fine.”

“He has already scanned me enough today. If there was anything wrong, he would have told me earlier,” Winn pointed out. “I hope that tomorrow is blissfully uneventful. Today has been a very long day.”

He smirked. “As far as I know, it should be. Since tomorrow is one of the days in which the children don’t have classes, I plan on fixing the replicator and staying home.”

Winn moved to the window and sighed pensively. “But tomorrow may not be uneventful. Who knows what might happen? You and I both have our share of enemies.”

Dukat rose from the couch and stood behind her. Then he wrapped his arms around her, so that his arms encircled both her and their unborn child. “I can’t promise that there will never be any danger, but I can promise that as far as it is up to me, I won’t leave you to face things alone.”

Having him holding her so protectively, she could almost imagine his words to be a form of “I love you,” but she surmised that it was just another example of him simply doing what he considered to be the right thing.


	21. Chapter 21: Waking Up

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” “The Begotten” is alluded to.

Chapter 21: Waking Up

Dukat woke early enough the next morning to hear Winn leave. Her dress that day was dark blue with light blue flowers scattered on it. He decided to repair the replicator while she was gone. As he had suspected, the repair did not take long once he had replaced and inserted the correct parts. She returned to find the table already set and on the two plates were two cake-like meals topped with a red fruit and a white fluffy substance.

“Good morning, Gosrin,” she said with a smile. “I see you’ve repaired the replicator. Breakfast looks interesting.”

He smiled back. “Good morning, Adami. I was perusing the database and I came across something called ‘Belgian waffles with strawberries and whipped cream.’ It sounded like something worth trying.”

She checked a mirror to see that her hair was out of the way, as breakfast looked like it had the potential to be sticky. Her hair was broken into three small braids at the top and the temples that mixed with the rest of her hair in a bun. She sat down and studied it for a moment, then looked back to him. “It smells delicious, but did the database happen to say how to eat it? It looks as though it could be picked up, but it might be a bit messy.”

Checking the database again, he replicated forks and knives, along with a bottle of strawberry syrup. “It recommends utensils, as well as syrup.”

Winn ate a few bites. “This tastes as delicious as it smells.”

“Agreed. The humans, for all their peculiarities, have some surprisingly good food selections,” Dukat said after eating some of his waffle as well.

They had almost finished breakfast before either of them spoke. “I have done some thinking, with regard to the woman in the brig. I think we should let Bato take her back to Bajor, rather than putting her through a long and drawn-out Federation trial,” Winn remarked.

Dukat raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure that’s wise? What if she tries to kill a Cardassian again?”

“I think that Bato can be trusted to keep an eye on her. If the monastery can help her, then perhaps so can he. I am planning on staying in contact with him, in case the plan does not work,” she explained.

Dukat contemplated her decision as he cleaned up the plates. “A chance to start over could be what she needs, but I would want some sort of guarantee that she won’t try it again.”

“I will mention it to him,” she said as she stood. “What are your plans for today?”

“I brought a box back from those disastrous closets in the classroom that Sisko so graciously unlocked. It contains material for a few lessons using physical objects,” Dukat stated.

Winn raised an eyebrow. “What sorts of objects?”

“Geometric shape pieces, a gyroscope, a few sets of magnets, and other things,” he answered, retrieving the box.

He set the box on the kitchen table. She stood over his shoulder. Among the objects were a deck of cards in a box and a small electronic pad held together by a rubber band. Dukat took the band off of the pad and cards. Turning the pad on and resetting the language setting for Cardassian, he skimmed the text.

“According to this, the cards in this box are for lessons involving probability. Apparently humans have used playing cards to illustrate probability for centuries. I’m going to keep reading and see what I find,” he remarked.

“While you do that, I will be working on tomorrow’s literature lessons,” she responded, walking to the couch and picking up her electronic pad from the coffee table.

They were each perusing their own lessons quietly, but then Winn heard the cards being dumped out and reshuffled, slapped on the table, reshuffled more times, and spread out onto the table. Eventually her curiosity peaked and she looked over the couch. “What are you doing?” she questioned.

He grabbed the cards and joined her on the couch. Then he displayed the cards on the coffee table in several neatly arranged piles. It looked as though a few had people on them, while the rest had numbers and patterns. “According to whomever wrote this,” he paused and held up the pad, “probability can be illustrated as a fraction of the results you want divided by the overall results of something. There are a few different ways to demonstrate this. There are four patterns in the deck of cards. Each pattern has these three face cards,” he said, pointing to the queen, jack, and king. “There are fifty-two cards all together. There are thirteen cards per patterned group. These here are queens. The probability of drawing any queen is four divided by fifty-two, or one divided by thirteen. The probability of drawing this queen,” he paused and picked up the queen of spades, “is one divided by fifty two.”

She raised a skeptical eyebrow. “It might take a while to explain to the children what is on the cards, as well as the significance. You said that there were other ways to demonstrate probability,” Winn reminded.

He picked up the queen of clubs. “They can be used as examples of life probabilities. Let’s say that this card is Teacher Winn,” he put the card down on the table and took out four other cards with clubs on them. “Ignoring the numbers, we are going to look at the symbols. These cards represent four days. Teacher Winn drinks jumja tea every day, so in four days, the probability of her drinking jumja tea is four divided by four, or one.”

Winn smirked. “Are you really planning on using me in your lesson?”

“Only if you don’t mind.” He paused and took the jack of spades. “Let’s say that this card is Teacher Gosrin.” Then he took two club cards, one diamond card, and one heart card. “Teacher Gosrin drinks jumja tea, but sometimes he likes red leaf tea,” he tapped the heard card,” and other times he likes raktajino, “he touched the diamond card.” The probability of him drinking jumja tea in four days is only two divided by four.”

“Using just the symbols like that might be an easier way to start that lesson,” she observed.

He nodded, taking the pad back to the kitchen table. “Using the symbols would also help them to understand the human numerals associated with the cards. It has potential.” He walked back to the couch.

“Thank you,” Winn said as she stood and picked up the face cards.

He raised an eyebrow. “For showing you the probability lesson?”

She laughed lightly. “No. For not having anywhere else to go today.”

_You were upset yesterday. I almost died. You needed me here today_ , he wanted to say. However, he worried that anything that he was planning on saying would sound better in his mind than aloud. She had the face cards in her left hand as she took a step toward the kitchen table where the box for the cards sat. He grasped her right hand and puller her back to him, turning her hand so that their thumbs linked. In almost a half-spin, she was facing him again. He had caught her by surprise and she dropped the cards on the floor.

“Do the humans have a name for this sort of mess?” she asked with a smirk.

He chuckled as his right thumb stroked her right shoulder. “I believe it’s called ‘Fifty-two Pickup.’”

_I wonder what the probability is that she would let me kiss her,_ he thought to himself. His right hand moved from her shoulder to her face. He ran a finger lightly along her hairline and then cupped her cheek, gently caressing it with his thumb.

She saw the warmth in his eyes and for the first time she was paying attention to how he looked at her. _Perhaps Kira is right. Maybe he does love me_ , she pondered.

He decided not to wait for probability and kissed her gently. Her left hand rested on his right upper arm. Their lips brushed several times. His right hand moved from her face to her side. Suddenly the door chimed.

They laughed as they rested their foreheads together. “I thought that you were going to disconnect that,” Winn mentioned.

“I disconnected the intercom system. I left the door chime in case of emergencies,” he admitted.

“What is the probability of us being interrupted every time you and I are otherwise occupied?” she inquired.

He kissed her forehead. “I would say fifty out of fifty-two cards.” As they separated, he sighed. “We should probably see who’s at the door.”

She nodded. “Computer, who is on the other side of the door?”

“Bato Ravi,” the compute answered.

Winn looked back to Dukat. “I suppose now is as good a time as any to talk to him.”

“I’ll get the cards while you do that,” he remarked.

She opened the door to him. Bato smiled at her and gave a brief nod to Dukat. “How are you, after yesterday?” he inquired.

“We are both fine, thank you. Won’t you come in?” she offered.

He stepped inside. “I’m glad you’re both doing well.”

“I thought you might be bringing your children by,” Winn commented.

Bato chuckled. “The funny thing about children is that they like to leave messes. We haven’t even been here that long and their rooms are cluttered. We are leaving soon, but I told them that it’s rude to leave the rooms a mess when you’re a guest.”

“I wish all of you a safe journey then,” she mentioned.

The Bajoran looked past her to see Dukat finish picking up the cards. “What are all those?”

“A lesson plan on probability,” Dukat replied.

“Looks like an easy way to make a mess,” Bato observed.

Winn chuckled. “That too.”

Bato took a breath before speaking. “Have you decided what will be done about Sito Joli?”

“I have,” Winn began. “After careful consideration, I feel that it would be best for her to accompany you back to Bajor and be taken to the monastery that you mentioned. It might help her to have a fresh start of sorts, a second chance.”

He smiled. “I truly think it will help.”

“I would like to stay in contact with you, should this idea not work,” Winn told him.

Bato nodded in understanding. “Of course. You want to make sure that your husband is safe. You have my word that she won’t bother you again.”

“Thank you,” Winn responded.

The Bajoran man headed toward the door, but then turned around. “I hope someday that Bajor understands what you are trying to do here, how important it really is that our people find peace.”

“As do I,” she added.

After Bato left, Winn contacted Odo and Sisko to tell them that Sito would be leaving with Bato. Though they both seemed hesitant, Sisko had given the decision to her.

Winn woke one morning, feeling terribly uncomfortable a few weeks later. Walking all the way to sickbay and back had become far more strenuous than it had been the previous week. She paused in the doorway to their quarters as she entered. Dukat looked up from setting the table for the breakfast that he had replicated and walked over to her.

“Adami, are you alright?” he asked with concern.

She walked over to the table and sat down. “I will be. The walk to sickbay just feels as though it gets longer and longer.”

“Did Doctor Bashir examine you?” Dukat inquired.

Winn shook her head. “I was only there for the usual sneezing treatment. Bashir was busy treating a man with a broken leg.”

He moved the single braid of her hair aside and started rubbing her shoulders and neck. “I think that you should let Deela teach your lessons today. It might even be wise simply stay here until the baby is born.”

Winn considered his suggestion. “Perhaps you’re right. I am far too tired and far too uncomfortable to teach today.”

They ate breakfast and he left for class, taking her notes with him to give to Deela. He paused before leaving their quarters. “Please let me know if it turns out that you’re not alright today?”

She smiled and walked over to him. “I appreciate your concern, but Gosrin, I will be fine.” He kissed her forehead and then left.

Winn decided that a nap might help her feel better, but after an hour of staring at her ceiling, she decided to read over the next week’s lesson plans. While she was reading, a bolt of pain shot through her abdomen. She tried to ignore it, but it was followed by another, and then another. As she gripped the counter through another bolt of pain, she realized that the only logical explanation was that she was having contractions.

She decided to call Kira, only requesting that the colonel come by. Kira arrived and immediately realized the seriousness of the situation. “Why didn’t you ask for Julian?” Kira questioned.

“I wanted to be sure first, and I’m not up to walking all the way to sickbay to find out,” Winn managed.

“I’ll get him over here. Do you want me to call the others?” Kira inquired. Winn had asked Kira, Ezri, and Kassidy to help preside over the birth, as she had when Kira had been pregnant.

“If the doctor confirms that I am in labor, then yes,” Winn replied.

Bashir arrived shortly and after a quick scan assessed that she was in labor. Kira made the necessary calls and soon Ezri and Kassidy arrived with their instruments. As they helped to make Winn comfortable in her bed, Ezri glanced around the room. “Adami, where is Gosrin?”

“I haven’t told him of the situation yet. He had a good lesson planned and I didn’t want to interrupt him,” Winn explained.

All three women rolled their eyes. “No matter what he’s teaching, this is more important. He is not going to want to miss the birth of his child,” Kassidy stated.

“I’ll tell him,” Ezri volunteered. Winn nodded for her to go and soon Ezri was on her way to the classroom.

She quietly opened the door to find Dukat in the middle of a physics lesson relating to distance and velocity. He was writing equations on the board. When he turned around to face the class, she cleared her throat. He over to where she stood.

“Lieutenant Dax, what can I do for you?” he inquired.

“If I could borrow you for a moment outside, Teacher Gosrin,” she stated.

“I’ll be right back. Work on your equations,” he told the students as he followed her outside the classroom.

“Your wife didn’t want to interrupt your lesson. We finally convinced her that you’d want to know. She’s in labor,” Ezri relayed.

His eyes widened in shock. Then things snapped back into focus. “I should have known she would wait until the last possible second to tell me. Is she alright?” he questioned.

“Yes. I need to get back. I’m playing one of the instruments,” she mentioned.

He nodded. “Of course. Go on ahead. I’ll be there shortly,” he told her. As she was leaving, she heard him say, “Class dismissed.”

Ezri returned to Winn’s room. “Did you find him?” Winn asked.

“Yes. He’s not far behind me,” Ezri answered, picking up her instrument.

Dukat entered the room and pulled a chair over to Winn’s side. “I told you to tell me if you weren’t alright.”

She breathed through a contraction before answering. “I didn’t want to interrupt your lesson.”

“Some things are more important,” he said, sitting down and taking one of her hands in his. “I said that you don’t have to do things alone. I’m not going anywhere.”

Winn smiled at him and said, “I’m glad.”

A few hours later the baby was born. Bashir brought the half-Cardassian, half-Bajoran girl over to them. Then he scanned the baby and Winn. “You and the baby are both healthy. Congratulations.”

“Congratulations,” Kassidy, Kira, and Ezri echoed. Winn thanked them for their help.

“What’s her name?” Kassidy inquired.

Winn looked at Dukat and smiled. “Lilan. Her name is Lilan.”

“We’ll leave you all alone,” Ezri commented as she, Kassidy, Bashir, and Kira left.

Dukat held his daughter in his arms as he sat in the chair by Winn’s bed. "Awake child, we await you with love and welcome you into the world,” he told the baby.

Winn looked over at him in surprise. “I can’t believe that no one else remembered that. It’s said at every Bajoran birth.” The new parents smiled at each other. In a way it was fitting that he was the one to say the words that time.

“She’s beautiful,” he said quietly.

“Yes, she is,” Winn agreed.

“A second chance,” he remarked. Then he handed the baby back to Winn. He held the baby’s tiny hand in his. “I make you both this promise. I’ll do things right this time. I’ll be the father that I should have been,” he paused and looked at Winn, “and the husband I should have been.”

“This is all very new for me. I’ve never been a mother before, or a wife, but I will do my best. I also promise to communicate better and tell you things sooner rather than later,” she responded.

He kissed her forehead, then kissed his daughter’s forehead. “We are in this together.”

A month passed. Dukat had finished with a lesson that required the students to build models. Much to his surprise, Kira had stopped by to help, having some extra time. After the lesson, she was helping him clean up. Dukat spoke as they worked.

“Did I hear you tell Adami that you wanted to babysit once in a while?” he asked her. “It just seems so unlike you.”

She put some parts into a box by her feet. “It’s your fault for having the cutest baby on the station at the moment.”

“Whatever your motives, we really do appreciate the offer,” he told her sincerely.

They went back to cleaning. After a while, Kira spoke. “Not that it’s any of my business, but do you two still have separate bedrooms? You’re married,” Kira inquired.

Dukat looked over at her. “I have no desire to push her into anything that she doesn’t want.” He turned back to moving the desks. “Why is it any of your concern?”

“Because your daughter’s going to need her own room eventually,” Kira reminded.

“We will figure out a solution eventually, even if I have to sleep on the couch,” he remarked.

Kira scoffed. “I think you’re avoiding the obvious. She loves you. You should really tell her that you feel the same.”

His brow furrowed. “And just how would you know that, Major?”

‘Major’ had stuck as his pet name for her. “For one, did you decide to have a trade school up here, or was it her idea?” Kira asked.

“Hers,” Dukat responded.

“Did she ask you to come with her, or was that your idea?” Kira questioned.

Dukat paused. “That was her idea too.”

Kira rested her hands on her hips. “Face it, Dukat. You’re an idiot. She loves you. Talk to her.”

He smirked at her audacity. “This will end badly.”

“Then I’ll make you a deal. If she doesn’t love you, then I owe you a drink at Quark’s bar,” Kira remarked.

He laughed. “You hate me. You wouldn’t be seen with me in public unless Sisko ordered you to.”

She grinned. “That’s how sure I am that I’m right.”

When he went home, he found Winn singing to the baby as she held the infant close to her. “How did your day go?” she asked him.

“It went well. Nerys stopped by and helped with the lesson, then she helped clean up,” he related.

“She is full of surprises sometimes,” Winn commented. Lilan squirmed to see Dukat and the fussed slightly. “I think that she wants you to hold her.”

He smiled warmly and took the baby, holding her close to him. Lilan stopped fussing instantly. “How as your day?” Dukat asked Winn.

“Lilan didn’t want to sleep much today. I think she likes it when both of us are here. I finally got her to sleep by singing old Bajoran lullabies. She woke up again shortly before you returned,” Winn explained.

“You sing beautifully,” he told her.

She blushed. “Thank you,” she responded.

Dukat noticed that Lilan had fallen asleep. He put her in her crib and then walked back to the living room. “Would you like some tea?” he offered.

“Jumja tea, please,” Winn replied.

He went over to the replicator and ordered jumja tea for her and red leaf tea for himself. Then he took the cups over to the coffee table and sat down on the couch next to her. _I guess now is as good a time as any for this discussion_ , Dukat reasoned as they sipped their respective teas. “I was reminded of something important today: Lilan is going to need her own room.”

_Which means that our situation just became far more complicated_. “Was it Nerys who reminded you?” Winn probed.

“Actually yes. Though she was interfering, she did make a good point,” he stated.

Winn finished her tea and set it on the coffee table. “What do you suggest?”

“We have two options. Either I sleep on the couch, or we find a way to share a room,” he explained, setting his empty cup next to hers.

She picked up the empty cups and took them back to the replicator. “Making you sleep on the couch would be terribly unfair.”

“I won’t push you into something that you don’t want,” he conveyed.

Rejoining him on the couch, she said, “Then ask me what I want.”

He took one of her hands in his. “What do you want?”

“To know where you and I truly stand with each other,” she answered.

_No matter how this turns out, she needs to know the truth_ , he thought to himself as he took a deep breath before speaking. “I love you. I have loved you since I saw you in that blue dress at the resettlement center. You and Lilan mean more to me than anything. When I see you, it’s like waking up. There is no one else I would rather be with.”

She blinked in amazement as both hands when to her mouth in automatic reaction. He really did love her. She rested both hands on his upper arm as she spoke. “I wasn’t sure if you loved me, or if you were just doing what you saw as ‘the right thing.’ I love you too, Gosrin. I have loved you since that time I had tea with Ezri at the food court. She was asking me how you know that you love someone, and how to choose between two people. As I was explaining the first part of that question, I began to describe you. When I saw you at the other end of the food court, it was like waking up, and I realized that I love you too.”

He grinned as she touched her face. “We’ve been silly about this, haven’t we?” She could only nod in response.

Then he leaned toward her and kissed her. This time he was not holding back, and neither was she. The kiss grew in intensity and they kissed passionately. Her hair had only been pulled back with a band. One of his hands wove itself in her hair and slid it free from the band. A small moan slipped out when he deepened the kiss. Her hands fingered the ridges of his face and neck intentionally. They broke for air.

“And what have we learned today?” he asked with a smirk.

“No more separate bedrooms?” she answered.

“No more separate bedrooms,” he agreed. Then he kissed her again.

At Quark’s bar, Kira sat sipping a glass of spring wine. Occasionally she would glance at the door. Quark meandered over to her. “Waiting for someone?”

She looked at the time and then shook her head. “Nope. No one at all.” _I told you so, Dukat_ , Kira thought with a smile.

(A/N: An epilogue will follow.)


	22. Epilogue: 10 Years Later

Disclaimer: All Star Trek people, places, things, and ideas belong to Paramount Studios. AU just before and during “The Changing Face of Evil.” “The Storyteller” is alluded to.

Epilogue: 10 Years Later

Winn arrived at her quarters, having finished teaching for the day. She set the box containing the pads with the students’ essays down on the kitchen table. She replicated herself a cup of jumja tea before sitting down at the table to read them. As she lifted a pad out of the box, she noticed her reflection in the black glossy screen. The two braids at each of her temples were still neatly in place. They crossed at the back before mixing with the rest of her hair into a braid. A few white strands had appeared over the years, but blended well and looked more like the colored strings that she used in her braids occasionally. She had finished reading the third essay when the computer console beeped.

Walking over to it, she noticed that Bato Ravi was calling her. She sat down at the desk and smiled at him, noticing much more gray in his once dark hair. “Hello Ravi. This is a pleasant surprise.”

“Hello, Adami,” he answered. “I know it’s been nearly a year since we last talked. How are you and Gosrin?”

“We are both well. I was just grading a few of the students’ essays,” she stated.

“I forgot to ask the last time we talked. Are you still teaching most of the Cardassian children?” he inquired.

“Actually most of them are now involved in apprenticeships with vendors on the station. The majority of my current students are Bajoran children and children of Starfleet officers,” Winn replied.

“And Lilan, of course,” Bato added. “How old is she now?”

Winn smiled. “Nine years old. And she’s very bright.”

“Just the right age for getting into trouble,” Bato remarked.

Winn laughed. “Unfortunately. She is at the age where she knows better, too. At least she stays out of trouble most of the time.”

Bato grinned. “Sounds like my oldest daughter. She got into trouble by accident frequently when she was nine.”

Raising an eyebrow, Winn regarded him thoughtfully. “I thought you only had one daughter and three sons.”

“Joli is pregnant again. This one will be a girl,” he explained.

“Congratulations then. How is she?” Winn inquired.

“She’s still doing well. At the moment, she’s chasing our son around the kitchen. He’s taken to running off with any extra spoons that he can find. She still mourns her sister once a year, but we just celebrated our eighth wedding anniversary and we couldn’t be happier,” Bato relayed.

“I am glad to hear it,” Winn commented.

Bato looked over his shoulder, as if hearing a commotion in the background. “I should probably let you get back to reading essays. I just thought it was time to catch up.”

“It sounds as though you might have your hands full,” she added.

He chuckled. “That’s an understatement. Have a good afternoon, Adami.”

“You too, Ravi,” she ended. As she stood to return to the essays, she noticed the time. _Lilan should have been home by now_ , Winn mused.

She wandered back to the desk and flicked the switch to turn on the intercom. “Adami to Ezri. Are the children still with you?”

Winn could hear a baby wailing in the background. “Little Jadzia won’t stop crying. I don’t know what I did this time. The boys wouldn’t sit still, so I sent them out to play for a while. Lilan went with them, hopefully to keep them out of trouble.”

“Somehow I doubt that,” Winn mumbled.

“What was that? I didn’t exactly hear you,” Ezri stated.

“It was nothing. You stay with Jadzia and take a deep breath. Everything will be fine. I will check on the children,” Winn suggested. She sighed and switched off the intercom. _Perhaps Nerys had a point and I should have named Lilan after a different friend_ , Winn thought with a smirk as she exited her quarters.

Class had been dismissed for about an hour when Dukat heard the intercom. He had been setting up stations at some of the tables in the room for the next day’s science experiments. The years had not aged him much, except for the gray streaks at his temples. “Would Captain Sisko, Teacher Gosrin, and Dr. Bashir please report to the security office?” Odo requested. He had spent five years on the Changeling home world and then come back to live and work at the station again.

Dukat stood and began the trek, already having an idea as to what it was about. As he arrived at the security office with Sisko and Bashir, the problem was clear: Odo’s office has been covered in Earth toilet paper. It hung on the wall like streamers. It wrapped around the desk like a badly wrapped package. It draped around a few lighting fixtures like spiders’ webs. As the three fathers entered the office, Odo stood with four children: a half-Cardassian, half-Bajoran girl, a human boy, and two twin half-human, half-Trill boys.

“I found these miscreants making a mess of my office,” Odo grumbled.

Dukat sighed and crossed his arms, facing his daughter. “Winn Lilan,” he began. She knew that when he used her full name that she was in trouble. “You were supposed to be doing your homework. What did your mother and I talk to you about this morning?”

She sighed in almost the same way and put her head down, looking genuinely embarrassed. “Not to let my friends get me in trouble.”

“And what does all this look like to you?” he questioned, gesturing at the paper-covered office.

“Trouble,” she admitted. Then she looked up at him. “I’m sorry, Father. I’m sorry, Odo. But they said it would dissent- distinct-”

“Disintegrate?” Dukat supplied.

“Yes, that’s the word,” Lilan mentioned.

Sisko looked at his son, a few months younger than Lilan. “Jonah Sisko, what do you have to say for yourself?”

“I’m sorry, Dad. I’m sorry, Odo,” the boy responded. “Lilan’s right. They told us it would disintegrate.”

“And who are ‘they?’” Sisko questioned.

Lilan and Jonah both pointed to the other two boys. Bashir crossed his arms and shook his head. “I should have known that you two had something to do with this. Garak, Miles, what do you have to say for yourselves?”

The two boys, younger than Jonah by a few months, pointed to each other and said, “He did it.”

Bashir turned to the others. “I’m sorry about this. They’ve been running amok more than usual since little Jadzia was born. With Ezri’s attention on the baby, these two think that they can get away with anything.”

Odo looked from the children to the fathers. “I’ll let you handle their punishment,” he said.

“If you two don’t object,” Sisko paused and looked at Bashir and Dukat, “I think it’s fitting that all of our children will clean Odo’s office.”

“That’s what I would have suggested,” Dukat remarked.

“Agreed,” Bashir added.

Captain Sisko faced the children. “I want all of this paper gone and everything wiped off.”

“Yes, sir,” the children responded simultaneously.

The fathers walked out of the office, followed by Odo. “The faces change, but the habits don’t,” Odo remarked.

“At least they didn’t take your bucket and fill it with oatmeal this time,” Sisko remarked with a smirk, remembering the antics of his older son, Jake, and Nog.

Dukat looked back at the office, watching the children take down the paper. “So this is what peace looks like.”

“Our children getting into trouble together,” Bashir added with a sigh.

Familiar footsteps walked up behind them. Dukat smiled as he noticed his wife out of the corner of his eye. She smiled back and stood next to him. “I noticed that Lilan had not come home yet, so I spoke to Ezri. I figured that I would find you and Lilan here.”

“It’s becoming a habit,” he grumbled.

Winn looked up at him. “What did they do this time?”

The answer came from the doctor. “My sons talked your daughter and Captain Sisko’s son into throwing paper all over Odo’s office,” Bashir admitted.

Covering her mouth in a failed attempt not to laugh, Winn glanced back at the children. “When she comes home, she can finish her homework and then help me cook dinner. Kata Lilan would have been amused.”

Dukat’s brow furrowed. “You’re probably right, but our daughter knows better.”

Winn watched the children as she slipped her left arm around Dukat’s waist. “She does know better. Look who has decided to organize everyone.”

The adults watched as Lilan seemed to briefly lecture the twins, and then she pointed the boys in different directions. She also pointed to a recycling unit. The three boys nodded. Then the four of them went off to their respective directions to gather the paper and place it in the recycling unit.

“Maybe they’ll all learn to be a bit more responsible,” Dukat conceded, resting his right arm around Winn’s shoulders.

“There are far worse things they could be doing than throwing paper around an office. They’ll grow out of it,” Sisko reassured him.

Odo frowned. “I beg to differ, Captain. That happens to be _my_ office!” He turned to face Sisko, Dukat, Winn, and Bashir. “Let them throw paper around your office, your classroom, and your sickbay and then say ‘they’ll grow out of it,’” he grumbled.

Sisko began to chuckle. Winn soon joined him, followed by Bashir and then Dukat. Odo harrumphed and shook his head.

The end.

Thank you to [eclipse_ze_lunachic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eclipse_ze_lunachic), [HoldThatThought6](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HoldThatThought6), [Aanairai](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aanairai), [GulValCardi_F75](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GulValCardi_F75), [RobertBruceScott](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RobertBruceScott), [Lokiorbit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lokiorbit), and three guests for kudos.

Thank you to GulValCardi_F75 and RobertBruceScott for your insightful and helpful comments.

(A/N: I have enjoyed writing this story. I'm almost sad to end it, but all stories must end somewhere. I hope you have enjoyed reading it.)


End file.
